Mass Effective: A Hero Made
by DrStache
Summary: Waking up on Eden Prime is not how I wanted to spend my weekend. Stranded in a strange new world with stranger characters, I skirmish with Shepard against Saren in a epic struggle to survive. When one's reality is warped and the pressures of the Galaxy are closing in on them, can they deal? Probably. Rated T for profanity.
1. An Amnesiac Adventure

As I woke, my eyes struggled to adjust to what they saw. Above me, the sky was a hue of dark violet and a tinge of orange in it told me the sun was still rising. I blinked a couple times before I suddenly found myself wondering why the hell I could see the sky. I also racked my brain to find a reason why I was laying down outside so early in the morning. I had gone to sleep relatively late after finishing an intense Friday night of passionately studying the properties of propylene glycols. I had definitely not gone out last night, or at least I didn't remember going, and I definitely would remember if I had gotten wasted enough to end up like this.

_CRACK._

My eyes shot open, and as every muscle in my body tensed, I felt a pang of what I could only describe as sheer terror as the sound echoed in my head.

_That was a gunshot. Someone just shot a fucking gun._

It took every effort I had to not look toward where the shot had come from, yet seconds later, I did anyway. If I was to die a witness, I at least wanted to see the scum who was going to kill me. I would have breathed a sigh of relief had I not thought it would have been heard as I found a wall of haphazardly stacked crates to my right. I then jerked myself up from where I was laying as I felt something warm soak my pants. A man sat across from me, arms held across his legs, head buried in between his knees. A steady stream of liquid gold coming from his pant leg had pooled near mine.

_OH Shit._

As I stared at the homeless man cowering in front of me, I could only feel the grip of fear as I grasped my situation. I have woken up downtown, in the middle of what I could only guess to be an empty alley, across from a dirty hobo who had just pissed himself all the while being a witness to homicide. I slowly propped myself up and scooted away from him until I felt the crates that were stacked behind me. The glint of the sun off the brilliant, dazzling white wall to my left though hinted I was next to an esteemed establishment.

_The only place with marble like this would be a museum or government building._

My eyes turned back to the fearsome bum across from me. I struggled to come up with a plan of action as I was strangled by fear.

_I could make a break for it. If it's a government building, help shouldn't be too far away with how loud that gunshot was._

I waited for what seemed like an hour, probably only seconds, it was kind of hard to tell, before I slowly rolled onto my stomach and got onto my knees. Before I turned around I could feel the homeless man's eyes peering on my back.

"What are you doing!?" I heard him hiss as I slowly shifted my body to face him.

He had relatively little facial hair for a bum, a pretty nice five o' clock shadow going for him actually, his eyes staring at me with an intensity that matched my professors whenever they caught me sleeping in lecture. Actually looking at him, he looked much less like the vagabond I had imagined.

"Seeing if the coast is clear," I whispered back, slowly putting my head above the crates separating us from the alleyway.

"Oh god, you're going to get us killed," he muttered as he put his head back into a fetal position.

I froze as several more gunshots rang in my ears, although I could tell they were much farther away than the first. I started to wonder whether I was actually in Detroit instead.

That's when I heard the growl. A weird, high pitched growl. A growl that sounded all too familiar. A growl I had heard too many times before. A growl that could only be described as...synthetic. My curiosity overcame my fear as I popped up for a millisecond and then back down.

_That can't be right. _

I risked peeking up again and eyed the figure that had its back turned to me. Its posture was human but the gleam from its metallic hide indicated otherwise. So did the tubes, antenna, and flashlight that one had for a face across from it.

_Nonononono._

The sky I originally thought was dark purple was now bright orange with plumes of smoke rising in the distance, and my nostrils flared as they were attacked by the smell of ash and soot.

_The first realization that hit me was that we were most definitely not in an alley. _

I popped back down with my head starting to swim. We were on some kind of elevated platform. I saw a grassy plain further ahead with a hill rolling over the horizon.

_We were definitely not in an alleyway. Most definitely not in a city. And oh my god, those were the things from the place. Geth._

I looked toward my partner who had obviously retreated back into his mind, that puddle of his though unfortunately expanding. As I pressed my hands to my face to stop myself from becoming overwhelmed, I jumped as what I felt to be cold metal pressed against my skin. I looked at my hands, and the rest of my body for that matter, for the first time. What had felt like a comfortable tracksuit was actually armor. Plates overlapping each other covered my chest as I moved my eyes further down. A codpiece attached to what I deemed a belt covered my groin, and more armored plates masked the front of my legs, plastered atop of what looked to be like actual fabric. My arms seemed to be covered in similar fashion, practically every inch of my body covered in the armor's onyx sheen.

_Sooooo yeah._

I racked my brain again to go over my current scenario. I had woken up, and found myself lying down behind some horribly stacked crates.

_Don't forget clad in armor._

A sorry shell of a man sat before me, frightened out of his mind, although I could attribute his fear to the Geth just on the other side of said crates.

"Geth," I whispered under my breath.

It felt weird to say the word out loud. My mind was still preoccupied with the concept that alien robots couldn't be more than several feet away when a volley of gunshots assaulted my eardrums. My compatriot's eyes shot open as he heard the firefight happening beside us too. He looked to me and I gave him a look that I imagined said, "I don't know what the fuck is going on dude, don't look at me." But I physically said nothing, going over all the possible scenarios that could explain this in my head.

_Definitely not some kind of elaborate game show prank. The Geth and urine were too realistic to dismiss. If this was a dream, it was hella lucid. The taste of ash in my mouth, the sounds assaulting my eardrums, and the terror paralyzing my body indicate otherwise. I could have some degenerative neural disease I didn't know about and finally gone insane. Or this could just be my reality, the life I formerly knew all being a dream. _

The last thought had me reflexively chuckle at its stupidity. Then I frowned.

_I'm definitely insane._

I then noticed a distinct lack of noise in the air, the firefight apparently having subsided.

_If I accept for a moment this is truly the universe of Mass Effect..._

My mind went a mile a minute.

_The single gunshot earlier...and with the number of geth in the area...and the burning sky...and the surrounding area in shambles...and the guy hiding behind the crates...I was definitely there. _

Or rather, I was here, here on Eden Prime, the colony who was victim to the first Geth attack.

_This is Prologue: Find the Beacon. Or you know, I could just be on some random colony._

The only way to really determine that though would be the presence of Nihlus' body. I didn't see it when I looked, but if this truly was the mission I knew so dearly, Nihlus' corpse would be just on the other side of these crates.

The man across from me got up from the fetal position, realizing the firefight had ended too. Obviously debating whether to look to see which side had won, he and I flung our arms over our heads as the sound of another gunshot reverberated through the air.

_That's a sound I'm definitely not going to get used to..._

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

Looking back at it, I thought it better to combine the foreword and the first chapter. But this is basically a quick synopsis of the back story and reasoning for how and why this story came to be. Read it if you got some time to burn.

But if you don't or you just want to get to the good stuff, just continue to click the next button to the top left and strap yourself in...the story's just begun.

* * *

><p><strong>Foreword:<strong>

After I finished Mass Effect 3 the first time...I was hurt. Just one of the many who were disenfranchised with the outcome of the trilogy. AlthoughI was relatively late entering the series, when I first heard ME2 was coming out for the PS3, I was intrigued. I saw the commercials when it first came out for Xbox years before and the opportunity to get in on what seemed like a good story was too good to pass up. As I found out the first game was still an exclusive, and learned about Mass Effect's unique story porting, I ate up all the information available on the first game from the ME Wiki. Planning my choices for the second, who I romanced, who I killed, who I saved, I had my Shephard ready for the Mass Effect sequel.

Fast Forward several years later to the ending of Mass Effect 3 which left me with an emptiness on how...weirdly the series had ended to say the least. Watching fanmade ME videos online, Bioware forum debates, the famous IT, are how I ended coping with how it all ended. I didn't revisit the game until ME1 was finally ported to PlayStation and I did my first real playthrough for the series. Beating Saren, the Collectors, the Man, all over again without completely being renshep or parashep, just something in the middle, was something I really enjoyed. I had the EC and Citadel DC on hand this time around for ME3 too and although the EC wasn't what it was cracked up to be, the Citadel DC eased my pain, giving us a glimpse of what Shepard had to look forward too had he survived, having real interactions with the companions you've come along to know and love. As Shep took his breath after destroying the reapers at the end of the game, I slowly let the series drift to the back of the mind as I finally moved on.

Fast forward again to present day, on my current playthrough. I had not touched the trilogy again until recently, when my sister had knocked it and several other games down from a shelf. Seeing the cover for ME2 evoked strong reactions, ones I didn't even understand, and I realized I had never done a perfect playthrough of Mass Effect. Everyone lives, Reapers destroyed, the galaxy left in the best state possible. It's what Shepard and the crew deserved. I loaded ME1 and begun what I deemed my final playthrough (for awhile at least). Paragon Shepard would leave no stone unturned, no conflict unresolved, and help everyone from street bums to alien ambassadors in his quest to resolve the galaxy's problems.

I got bummed as I finished the first game though, as I still had to deal with ME3's filthy endgame. I looked online in curiosity to fan made endings made long back when the game first came out to see what could've been. I looked at things like ME Vindication and the reconstruction of ME choices and amount of detail gone into it. Replacing rachni with reaper elcor if they had been killed in the first game? A really cool mechanic that would have truly personalized one's playthrough and universe. Romancing Khalisah? A little less so. The alternate ending by Arkis, which expanded on Shepard's decision to reject the Catalina wine mixer and show what everyone wanted to see in the end: all races united in their fight against the reapers. The hilarious Mass Effect MS Paint adventures created by the now long gone Lankist.

And then I stumbled upon ME fan fiction. I read rewrites of the end, a lot of them damn good, and then I realized how much content was actually out there. I had always been wary of fan fiction, Mary Sue self inserts and erotic stories of two characters' passionate lovemaking. But seeing all the material, good and bad, out here really got me. I didn't like the ending, so like the rest of you, I thought, why not create my own.

I liked a lot of the stories already out there, ME interstitium, Accidental Hero of the Galaxy, Masses to Masses. And I realized, it would be a lot of fun to do the same. The boring ramblings here are just to give a justification to the madness I plan on taking when I should be working on Finals. Not gonna lie, that might be another reason why I want to do this too. Making my own story though, with the characters I come to love, is something I believe I really want to do, and believe that I could do well too. This is a story of, however clichéd, a modern person stuck into the world of Mass Effect. I can definitely say this will be diverting from canon though, as I wanted to explore a ME universe a little different from the usual, taking ideas and plots from around the extranet, to hopefully creating a truly unique story with its own twists and turns. I might be a little late to the party, but I still enjoy the Mass Effect series and the global community it's created. And to be honest, although this story is mostly for my own benefit, I still like to share it with the rest of you too.

This is the story of...Mass Effective: A Hero Made.


	2. Who? What? Why?

_Good question._

Only moments ago, the colonist Powell - like the rat he was - had sold me out to none other than THE Commander. Which only further confirmed my suspicions of where I was. Shepard did not look exactly like how I remembered him though. Or I guess in this case her.

* * *

><p><strong>Seconds earlier...<strong>

"Commander...its Nihlus," said Alenko as Shepard and company rolled up to the space port. She saw the Turian's corpse past the lieutenant. Its body was strewn across the floor, a single bullet hole laying in between its eyes.

_Apparently Spectres aren't as good as they say..._

"A Turian? You know him?" said the heavily armored marine walking up the stairs to her right.

"He's a Spectre. He was with us on the Nor-" Alenko tried to finish before he was cut off.

"Something's moving! Over behind those crates!" the gunnery chief shouted. Shepard had seen it too. She drew her weapon as a colonist popped up.

"Wait! Don't-Don't shoot! I'm one of you! I'm human!"

* * *

><p><strong>At the same moment...<strong>

After jumping up, his eyes quickly glanced back down at me.

"You come out too!" I heard a woman yell.

_Dat Bastahd! I really wanted some time to think up a plan of action..._

I tried my best to look at him menacingly for giving me up but he seemed to be underwhelmed by my stare. I decided to raise my hands above my head as I slowly stood up too, trying to pin the voice that addressed me.

_I recognize Williams and Alenko's voices but- _

I cut myself off as I saw the group of soldiers in front of me. Alenko and Williams seemed relatively the same as they did in the game. Although ME's graphics didn't do them much justice once I saw them in person.

_Black hair, male Caucasian, looking at me with that blank face containing just a hint of disapproval._

I recognized Carth right away, who happened to be wearing the same attire as me, helmet hanging from his back. To his far left...

_Black hair in a bun, female Caucasian, hawkish nose, her tone when referring to Nihlus..._

That was certainly good ol' xenophobic Williams, wearing her signature phoenix armor, helmet in the same place.

The woman in between them though is not someone I was particularly familiar with. She was completely clad in ebony armor. A red stripe traveled down her right arm, an N7 designation on her chest. She had crimson red hair cut short, though still long enough to reach her neck, with red bangs swept to the right. I thought she couldn't be much taller than me, 5'09-5'11, and probably around 140-160 pounds without the armor. She wasn't petite but she wasn't large either. Without the armor and the massive heat she was packing, you wouldn't be able to tell this was one of the most dangerous soldiers in the galaxy.

Except for her eyes. Although I loathe to use the term 'emerald', that's exactly the word I'd use to describe the bright green irises staring at me. I'd also use the term terrifying when referring to them. They were incredibly sharp, her gaze cutting into me like razors, demanding attention from whomever they found, burning with an intensity that was so overwh-

I cut myself off before I realized everyone was now staring at me as well.

_Scary._

Whether I was referring to her actual gaze or to the realization of how I had just been describing it, I couldn't say.

"Who are you two..."

* * *

><p><strong>Present Time.<strong>

_Good question._

"...and what are you doing sneaking around back there?" she "asked."

I racked my brains for what I was going to say before my partner opened his mouth.

"I'm sorry," the bum stammered, "I was hiding. From those...creatures...My name's Powell. I saw what happened to that turian. The other one shot him."

"What? You're saying Nihlus was murdered by a turian?" the commander asked incredulously. Alenko went slack jawed after hearing that tidbit of information.

"The other one got here first. He was waiting when your friend showed up."

She glanced at me. "Is this true?"

"Uh, Yeah," I retorted, accidently coming across like a jackass. She didn't look too pleased. I tried to make myself sound as sincere as possible.

"The turian was silver, with a cybernetic arm. Bright blue robotic eyes," I added, turning my attention to Powell. "Ni-The turian had called him Saren."

Powell looked at me confused. "How do you know what the turian looked like?" he asked.

_Shit. Fuck you Powell._

I furrowed my brow at him.

"I saw him through the crates." I replied.

_Nice sav...wait, why did he ask that? He had to have seen Saren to know he was a turian too._

Powell immediately disputed my claim. "When you jumped back here, I'm pretty sure you knocked yourself out cold. You were laying down there with your eyes shut for a long time. I didn't see you get up until after that turian got shot."

_Powell, yah bastahd._

I turned my look back to Shepard's crew.

"I was just closing my eyes to wrap my head around our situation."

"If your eyes were closed, how do you know what the turian looked like?" Shepard asked, as I noticed her hand subtly moving to the pistol holstered at her side.

"Uh, I saw him before I hid back here...I assumed that the turian Powell saw was the same one."

Shepard didn't seem convinced.

"And I was definitely still conscious when the two had their conversation."

_This isn't going well. Come on, you don't need their full attention. Turn the conversation away from you. Use some classic misdirection._

I quickly added, "I'm still trying to get over the fact that the Geth are the ones attacking us. They haven't been seen past the veil in centuries."

I turned back to Powell as I noticed him gazing at me absently. "The creatures," I clarified.

"I could understand why you both hid, the Geth aren't something anyone's come up against in a while," Alenko stated.

"Yeah, I like the way you hid behind those crates during the fight. Really helped us out. Thanks a lot." Shepard looked at me damningly.

I noticed Ashley also staring at me, although she seemed like she was going to practically murder me.

"If you were under my command, I would have you disavowed and shot for desertion," Ashley spit, looking at me with disgust. "How could you hide there and abandon your squad to those things!?"

I could have sworn I saw a tear forming in the corner of her eye. After what she had been through today, I didn't exactly blame her for her reaction.

_Wait, my squad? I was wearing the uniform of a marine...I could actually even be one to my knowledge...uh...they're still looking...REPLY dumb ass!_

I spit out the first thing I thought of.

"Whoa wait...I'm not actually alliance. I found this armor on a soldier who had his...head taken clean off. I thought I could maybe make a difference..."

"Obviously not," Ashley snipped back, the fury she had at me though visibly subsiding.

Powell looked around nervously. Shepard turned her attention back to him as he continued.

"Look...I think the turians knew each other. Your friend seemed to relax. He let his guard down...and he killed him. Shot him right in the back. I'm lucky he and those Gath didn't see me behind the crates."

"Where'd Saren and his _Geth_ go after he killed Nihlus?" Shepard asked immediately afterwards.

"He jumped on the cargo train and headed over to the other platform. Probably going after the beacon." He paused. "I knew that the beacon was trouble. Everything's gone to hell since we found it. First the damn mother ship showed up. Then the attack. They killed everyone! Everyone! If I hadn't been behind the crates I'd be dead too! It was-"

I had started to tune them out, thinking of how to get myself out of this mess. I needed to think of my next move, because I certainly wasn't going to be left behind on Prime with this fool. As of right now, I was to their knowledge some colonist who had played soldier and hid at the first sign of trouble. Not a good way to convince them to take me off the planet with them.

_Well, do I even want to be on the Normandy? Could I even deal with what they were going to encounter? I have no military training, none that I know of anyway, and with the shit these guys are going to run into, I didn't exactly want to be thrown headfirst into all the firefights they were going to see... _

"- while the Geth butcher everyone else!" Shepard sounded like she was letting him have it.

_Well, better him than me. _

" I don't even have a gun! What was I supposed to do? Run out there and die? I couldn't save them. Nobody could. It was... horrible." When he paused, I half thought he was going to curl back up into fetal position. Then he pointed at me.

"He had a gun though! And he still dove behind here too! I thought he had gotten us both killed!"

_Oh okay, its gon' be like that huh? _

Although if he was telling the truth, he was right. Apparently before I woke up my body had a mind of its own. Was there a chance what I said was true? Was I just a cowardly colonist? Or could I really be a marine who abandoned his squad mates?

The thought sent chills down my spine. At least I knew I didn't just pop into existence. Or did I?

_This is hurting my brain. _

I looked up to find the Normandy crew still waiting for an answer. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed a predator lodged in between two stacked crates where I had been first laying. The gun Powell mentioned. I bent down to pick it up and after standing back up, I found myself with three guns pointed at my face.

"No-no, no, no need for that." I stuttered as I slowly brought my gun to my side. As it contracted into a little square on my hip, I had to fight my giddiness in light of the current situation. "I just wanted to say that I did try. I overheated my gun shooting at one of those synthetic bastards and I barely drained its shields. I didn't think our guns could kill them!"

I was pretty proud of how convincing I sounded. Shepard just turned away.

"Come on, we have to get to that beacon."

_Oh no. _

My eyes widened as they all turned to leave.

_I am not going to be left hanging next to this guy covered in piss. Assuming direct control._

As I chuckled out loud to myself, the gang turned back towards me. I realized I didn't quite appear as sane as I'd like. I probably wasn't at this point. Powell had also started to leave before I called out his name.

_Payback time you back-stabbing bum. You think you can try to make me look bad? _

Although to be honest he didn't have to try very hard.

"Commander wait," I said, looking her dead on in the eyes. "I think Powell has something that might interest you." He turned back around with a confused look on his face.

"How do you know my rank?" she raised an eyebrow, fingering her pistol.

_I really need to think of what I should actually know._

"Uh, I wasn't entirely truthful with you Shepard. I recognized you as soon as I saw the N7 designation. I'm ...(_think fast_)...an investigator who was looking for ...equipment that would happen to occasionally go missing at this spaceport." My on the fly storytelling was impressing even myself.

"You should ask our friend here what equipment he was exactly smuggling."

Shepard turned to stare daggers at Powell as he had tried to slink away.

"What? No! I mean... what does it matter now? So I'm a smuggler. Who cares? My supervisor's dead. The entire crew's dead. It doesn't matter now, does it?" Powell sang like a canary.

"Anything hidden nearby that we could use against the geth?" Alenko interjected.

"A shipment of grenades came through last week. Nobody notices if a few small pieces go missing from the military orders."

"You greedy son of a bitch! We're out here trying to protect your sorry ass and all you can think about is how you can rip us off?!"

There was a lot more passion in that line then I remembered. I looked toward Powell who had begun to shrink under the women's scrutiny.

"I never thought you'd actually need those grenades! Who'd want to attack Eden Prime? We're just a bunch of farmers! How was I supposed to know?"

_Powell was caving under the pressure. I'd almost feel bad if Ham Solo hadn't tried to sell me out multiple times during the conversation. _

"Really...you sure you took _just _the grenades?" I raised an eyebrow quizzically.

"Too many people died here for you to start jerking me around!" Shepard yelled which caused both of us to slink back into our shadows.

"Okay! Alright. There was something else. Could be worth a fortune. Experimental technology. Top of the line. Take it. I don't need it. I didn't want anyone to get hurt. Really. I'm sorry."

He handed them a data pad and pointed to a crate nearby. Shepard gathered the information on her omni-tool and faced the tram station.

"We need to find that beacon before it's too late."

"Take the cargo train. That's where the other Turian went. I... I can't stay here. I need to get away from all this." And with that Powell took off toward the hill.

Kaidan turned to me, so far coming across as the only person in the group that was sympathetic to my situation. It seemed like it was just that time of month again for the ladies.

_Oh my god, please tell me I didn't say that out loud. _

If I did, they didn't hear, as he thanked me for helping them get the equipment.

"Alenko, we need to get a move on!" Shepard shouted as she picked up the hidden tech and began to carry on to the train.

"Wait!"

She turned to look at me and with one look I could tell she was all ready to rip me a new one.

"You've wasted enough of our time as it is, I don't have time for this."

"Look, I'm sorry we got across on the wrong foot. In your position, I know I'd react the same if I came across a marine who deserted his post." Shepard just looked at me incredulously. "I just want to make it up to you. I have a pistol, and armor. Let me come with you, I can help, the more the merrier right?"

She eyed me as I slowly climbed over the crates, leaving my sanctuary of safety for the first and unfortunately last time.

_If only I could bring you all with me :(__  
><em>

After vaulting the crates, I saw Nihlus' corpse for the first time lying behind her.

A dead Turian was still a Turian, and I had to say, he looked as alien as you could imagine. The dark pigmentation of his scaly skin largely contrasted with the white tattoos that were plastered all over his face. His noggin consisted of several distinct plates that I could discern facial features from: eyebrows, fringe, what I thought could be his nose. And as I looked more closely, I also found that his mandibles were slacked, eyes milky white, and a gaping hole laying in-between his eyes. A large puddle of azure blood surrounded his head.

I fought back the bile gathering in my throat at the grotesque sight. I had never seen a dead body save for at a funeral. Let alone an alien one. My eyes moved back to Shepard who had begun to open her lips.

"Come on." She said with a blank face. "We have a lot of ground to cover."

I couldn't believe my luck. Even though I still had a ways to go, it was a lot easier to convince her than I thought. I mean really REALLY easier than I thought. While I did not want to be stuck behind in Saren's aftermath, I found myself wondering why she had agreed to take me so quickly. I was expecting to really have to plead my case here.

A smile crept across my face.

_I'm not going to complain. I'm in the group. Now I just have to figure how to get in the Normandy._

"Take point. Hopefully you can at least be a distraction."

My grin quickly turned into a frown.

_This Shepard is definitely not as paragon as I hoped. _

We marched toward the "cargo train" in front of us, although it looked more like a mobile platform from this angle. I stopped in my tracks as a creeping realization crossed my mind.

_I don't think I ever played through Mass Effect with a Femshep. _

As Shepard reached the corner of the space port, Ashely spoke up.

"Hey, we never got your name."

_Oh shit. I never gave them my name...what is my name?_

I groaned as I realized I hadn't put any thought into it. As I begun to say my own, something happened.

I forgot.

Normally that would have freaked me out but at his point, I was too panicked to care.

"MY name? My name..."

I made a mental note to figure out my background, real or not, later. For now I just had to scramble for a name. A silly grin suddenly plastered my face as I thought of the perfect one a second later. Ashely looked at me like I was a mad man, noticeably tightening the grip on her rifle.

_I really need to work on a poker face._

"Marauder. Marauder Shield."

_Wait, was it Shield or Shields? _

Ashley raised an eyebrow.

_Didn't matter. And it probably wasn't the most typical name for a human. But with a trillion people in the galaxy, someone was bound to have it..._

"Before it's too late to introduce ourselves, I'm Lt. Alenko. That's Gunnery Chief Williams , and-"

"Come on Shield. I said you have point," the Red Head said interrupting Alenko.

I reluctantly trudged on past him and Shepard around the corner of the space port.

_...This can't be happening._

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

**Hey! Finally figured out how to make a line break. For future reference, I'll include any non-sequitors here. You can expect them every now and then at the end**

**of a chapter from here on out. Also wanted to add since I didn't have room in the summary that Mass Effect is owned by Bioware and EA, and that I claim no**

**ownership of the characters and properties being depicted, save one. Once we get off this god forsaken rock, hopefully we can get the ball really rolling!**

**Also, feel free to PM me or write a review! I don't write very often, so any pointers would be welcomed! Until next time gang!**


	3. Spaceport Standoff

The growls of the Geth alerted me to their presence, and my catlike reflexes sprang into action. As in, I dove into the nearest cover available like a coward. It seemed to be a right choice at the time though as a hail of bullets rained over my head. Shepard reaffirmed this as she and the rest of the crew rolled behind the panels on the tram as well.

"Geth ahead!"

_Thanks for the heads up Williams._

"Williams, Push Up! Alenko, hit them with a mass effect field. Shield, give suppressive fire!"

_Oh god_.

It happened fast. Alenko was the first to pop up, hitting what I determined to be the nearest geth with biotics. Blue sparks flew in the air as a sphere of azure was sent straight from his hand. I could hear similar sparks crackling from Shephard, as she sent her own biotic sphere at the enemy, with Ashley simultaneously rolling out of cover. Now or never I thought as I furrowed my brow and leaned out left from the safety of the panel in front of me.

The bright light of a Geth was the first thing I saw. I brought my predator level with my eyes and pulled the trigger. The force from the recoil racked my body. I pulled the trigger several more times before a bullet skimming my arm sent me back into cover. A bright blue light surrounding my body flashed for a second before becoming invisible again.

_Alright. This thing's got shields. Good to know._

"Look at that, you actually got one," Ashley snidely remarked sitting safe behind cover. "Looks like your gun wasn't as bad as you thought."

I peeked from my hiding spot to see that the Geth she was referring to lay dead in the middle of the tram. "Alright, I might have missed the one I shot at earlier," I lied through my teeth.

_Yeah, that was a lot easier than I thought. Didn't I only shoot like thrice!?_

I only had seconds to ponder this as I heard another growl from the panel ahead of me. I hadn't appreciated how much of a boon the third perspective was in the game until then.

_How the hell am I supposed to fight without being able to see where they are?...Fuck it._

I decided to grit my teeth as I popped from cover to take care of the pathetic Geth directly in front of me. I had a second to register the 7 foot monstrosity before it sprayed a volley of shrapnel at my face. I was knocked back on my ass behind cover. I could tell the Geth Destroyer had subsequently ceased to be as it was littered with ammunition from Shepard and company shortly after. I heard a _whhhrrrrrrp _as my shields started to reset.

"What the hell are you doing Shield!?" Shepard yelled as everyone got out from cover and advanced further down the tram without me.

_..._

It was that close. If it wasn't for the shields integrated into my armor, I'd have a missing head like the marine I had made up. I sat there shell shocked as the fire fight continued, shots whizzing over my head. Beads of sweat dripped down my face, my heart feeling like it was about to burst from my chest.

_That would've been it. I would've died on Eden Prime before Shepard even reached the beacon. If I hadn't woken up with armor, I'd be dead. _

I brought my hands to my face to feel if my beautiful visage had been scarred by the Geth. As I padded my face, it didn't FEEL shot up, despite the absence of a helmet.

_Definitely need to remedy that as soon as possible._

I rolled my head back to stare at the blood orange sky. Its hue seemed much darker than before.

"SHIELD!" I woke from my stupor and found that the group had advanced much further than I had realized.

"Coming!" I shouted as I gathered my thoughts, clenched the gun in my hand and stormed out from cover, straight down the middle of the tram. I sprinted down the aisle, aiming for where I saw Alenko kneeling. Then I saw the remaining Geth at the end of the train exiting from cover, all guns aimed clearly at me. The lights coming from their heads peered into my soul.

_And this is where my story ends._

Before I knew it, they had all been dropped, and I slowed to a brisk jog as the Chief shouted "Clear!"

"Looks like you are good for something," Shepard said sarcastically, approaching the console for the rail way.

"I'm not exactly a soldier," I muttered back, probably being the first truthful thing I've said all day. Alenko looked at me concerned before he set his eyes straight ahead as the train started down the railway. "Orders Commander?"

"The Geth will most likely be setting an ambush ahead of us. If the beacon is there, there's a good chance we'll see a large number of them too."

I gulped.

"Blow them away as soon as you see 'em."

I gulped again as I realized we were headed into an area that was about to do the same to us.

"Scared Shield?" the gunnery chief grinned as the train hummed, beginning to speed toward our destination.

I froze when I realized she was talking to me. I decided to just blurt out "Hah, you wish Williams." She really didn't need to though, as one brush with death was more than enough to send me into a fit of terror.

As they continued their conversation, I stood there on the mobile platform silently, wind blowing past my face. I wasn't exactly looking forward to our next encounter.

* * *

><p>When the tram stopped, we had a few seconds of repose before the Geth popped up. Bullets...And rockets rained from a walkway above us that the tram had passed before we came to a stop. Shepard didn't need to yell for me to take cover as I sprinted and jumped behind a crate on the spaceport's platform. The rest of the team though leapt straight into action, making short work of the Geth now assaulting our position. The only member who paused in the fray was Kaidan who when ducking back into cover, glanced back my way. I almost thought it was impossible to see someone's eyes grow so wide. I immediately spun around fully suspecting a Geth to be standing right behind me. All I saw was a giant cylinder hunk of metal.<p>

_Oh right, the bombs. The bombs made for the space port. The bombs made to specifically level the spaceport and anyone in it. The Geth bombs._

"Demolition Charges! The Geth must have planted them!" Kaidan shouted over the next volley of Geth fire.

"Hurry! We need to find them and shut them down!" Ashley shouted back as she returned fire, the Geth all just standing, emptying their heat sinks.

_If we didn't shut them down we'd all be blown skyhigh. _

I got a couple potshots off, apparently staving a Geth off long for Kaidan to run back past me to the detonator and start disarming it.

"Shield, stick with Kaidan, make sure he isn't interrupted by any Geth!"

"Will do!" I yelled, peeking back around the corner suddenly finding a rocket headed straight towards to me.

I blinked once as the rocket then whizzed upwards from its trajectory, creating a deafening explosion above us, the shockwave sending me reeling onto my butt. The Geth rocket trooper responsible was flung shortly after off the bridge, noticeably enveloped by a shimmering violet aura. When I made eye contact with Shepard, she only grunted and turned her attention back to the Geth.

"Done!" Kaiden yelled as he sprinted past me, scimitar in hand, up the ramp to the second floor of the spaceport. I scrambled after him, blindly following the soldier in front of me.

Several minutes later, and Kaidan had defused the bombs in the corridor and atop the sky way too. Shepard and Williams were aggressively putting down whatever synthetic soldiers popped up in front of them. With Kaidan focused on the bombs and me basically hiding, the two had practically cleared the entire spaceport themselves. Once Kaidan finished disarming the charge on the sky way, I followed him back towards the Commander and Williams, who were continuing down the main corridor perpendicular to ours.

That's when I saw the Geth Prime rear its ugly head.

Now the regular Geth troopers I have to admit were slightly underwhelming...when they weren't shooting at us. They seemed to be around my height, no extremely menacing traits, just seeming to be some regular ol' robots that resembled the lamp from Pixar. The colossus standing in the corridor was significantly more threatening. It was blood red, standing out from the sterile white walls of the spaceport, and towered above a stack of crates next to it, making me guess the thing was at least 10 feet. It also held a Geth spitfire in its hand from what I could tell, which was basically a portable Geth gatling gun.

_Dear god._

"Look at the size of that thing!" Alenko spurted out. Williams barely had time to fall back to Shepard's position before the crate she had been behind was blown away by a burst of energy.

"Lieutenant, I need an overload ASAP!"

"You got it Commander!" A dazzling display of electricity enveloped the Prime before its shields visibly dropped. Shepard immediately afterwards slammed it with a lift and as it helplessly floated in the air, Ashley and I unloaded our ammunition into the monstrosity. I unintentionally closed my eyes while firing, so I wasn't quite sure if I actually hit it. I opened them to find its limp frame hit the ground, the mass effect field wearing off around it.

_I know for a FACT you definitely could not use Lift on heavy units in the game._

It took me a second to compose myself and walk over to the rest of the group.

"It looks like the area's clear Commander."

"I can see that Alenko. Come on, we need to go find that beacon."

As the group moved towards the ramp leading down to the Prothean relic, I felt something gnawing away at the back of my mind. The firefight had really taken its toll. I could barely hear the exchange between Shepard and Kaidan because of the ringing in my ears, and the shock of almost dying thrice really racked my mind. The pumping adrenaline in my system didn't help too, as it made it kind of hard to focus on where I even was.

_Three times. Three times I had already escaped from the jaws of death. Death by shotgun to the face, death by explosion, death by giant robot. All of them were fairly traumatic. Three times. Three..._

I gasped, pretty loud I have to say, as I realized we had missed the fourth.

Kaidan turned around. "What is it?"

"There's another detonator!" I exclaimed, attracting the attention of Williams and Shepard as well.

"What are yo-"

Shepard didn't have time to finish the thought as the howls of husks filled the air. The shrieks themselves filled me with as much terror as the thought of being atomized did.

"Kaidan, I need you down here now!" Shepard yelled as she emptied a shotgun round into a husk that had tried to leap on top of her. As Alenko began to move, I tugged on his shoulder.

"There's another detonator behind those crates!" I tried to tell him over the added fire of Geth entering the battle. He blinked at me once before Shepard yelled again.

"ALENKO! I need some biotics NOW!" He blinked at me again before turning away. He hadn't heard me.

"Shepard behind you!" The Commander didn't need Williams' warning as she spun around and threw the Destroyer behind her clear into a stack of crates with a mass effect field.

_What do I do. What do I do._

I looked at Shepard below me. I had stared her in the eyes before turning and sprinting towards the end of the Station's balcony. The look she had given as I ran off racked my conscious with guilt.

_Why do I feel guilty? I'm not hiding, I'm saving their damn lives!_

Or at least I was going to try as I found the detonator hidden behind another tower of crates.

_How hard can it be? All it took was some button mashing in the game. Once I finish, I'd be a hero and the group would take me with them on the SR-1 fo sho._

Once I actually looked at the rig in front of me, I realized my fantasy's fault.

_This wasn't a game._

The detonator had a screen containing symbols that I could only discern to be Geth in origin, with wires weaving in and out between the cylinders constituting the bomb. I had no idea what to do. I stared at it for a while before I noticed the symbols on the screen moving from two columns to one. I could tell I was out of time. I was just about to yank out a handful of wires before I heard him.

"Do you need a hand with that?"

I barely had time to glance up before Kaidan saddled up next to me, immediately pulling out some wires and typing on his omnitool. He repeated this process several times, pulling out a cable and then sending a series of commands to the detonator's interface from his handheld.

The detonator's screen went blank as Kaidan closed his omni-tool.

"Thanks," I said, almost stunned at how close we all had been to death.

"Should have been a little louder, I almost didn't hear you." I opened my mouth but closed it again as he asked his next question. "How did you know there was another bomb?"

_My knowledge is a two edged sword. I really need to keep track of what I say._

I was still thinking of how to answer his question when Shepard yelled to us to get back to her position. As we walked back down the ramp, Kaidan defended me from the Commander, and how we all would have been blown sky high if I hadn't alerted them to the last detonator. All I could focus on though were the Geth and Husks littered across the cargo bay. My attention was especially drawn to the Husks. They looked like cybernetic skeletons-

W_hich they were..._

-And god did they look terrifying. Their faces were really unsettling.

_The Husks depicted in the trailer for Mass Effect 3 were spot on...and I was going to be damned before I let the Geth do that shit to ME._

I noticed a Husk's mouth to my left was still opening and closing. It remarkably resembled a fish out of water. I lifted my Predator and shot it in the head to put out its misery. I shot one more time for good measure.

_Never forget Rule #2, double tap._

A rush of adrenaline shot through me after I pulled the trigger the second time. Looking back up from the Husk, I saw it for the first time. The Prothean beacon. The giant black obelisk ahead of me towered over the entire spaceport, a faint green light emanating from it. Its design was sleek, not a single screw could be seen in its architecture. I wondered how the Protheans could have built the thing without any breaks. I also wondered how the hell I hadn't noticed it before. I stared at it absently for a good amount of time before pulling myself away.

_...Mmmm okay. It wasn't THAT interesting..._

I looked back to see Shepard wave Kaidan off, stare at me and then turn back around without saying a word. Apparently Kaidan's defense of my actions was convincing enough for her to not reprimand me for my apparent cowardice. She radioed Joker. "Normandy, the beacon is secure. Request immediate evac."

Kaidan and Williams walked past Shepard and I to get a closer look at the beacon.

"This is amazing. Actual working Prothean technology! Unbelievable!"

_Oh shit._

"It wasn't doing anything like that when they dug it up. Something must have activated it."

_The entire reason the beacon was in the game had slipped my mind...like everything else. _

I glanced back. Shepard, who while walking to the ramp at the opposite end of the spaceport, was still chatting with the Normandy.

_Shepard, oh my god, what are you doing?! You're not going to be close enough to the beacon!_

I began to open my mouth before a bright flash of light briefly stunned me. I saw Kaidan grabbing his head; his L2's most likely flaring up from the display of light. Williams was being pulled toward the beacon. My eyes widened.

_This is it. It's happening...Is this my role?_

I furrowed my brow.

_..I'm the one who's supposed to receive the visions._

I began to sprint toward Williams before Shepard shoved me aside, jumping up and throwing the chief out of the energy field that had surrounded her. Losing my balance, I landed flat on my face right below her.

"SHEPHARD!" Williams shouted as she got up from where she was flung.

"No! Don't touch her! It's too dangerous!" Kaidan said, restraining her, apparently having recovered from his short-lived headache.

I begun to feel a weird sensation travel throughout my body. The spaceport's floor seemed to be getting wider and wider. Then I saw Kaidan and Williams looking up at us.

_Shit._

As I levitated into the air upside down, I had just begun to grasp the situation before I felt Shepard's boot touching mine. I felt her give a strong push.

"Alenko gra-" she tried to order before a further burst of energy emanated from the beacon.

Her action actually had me floating back towards the ground before my head was blasted with a deafening scream. I shut my eyes when the sound assaulted my ears, the unpleasant cacophony that came after it sounded like nails dragging along a chalkboard. Immediately after I shut them, textures, shapes, images, pictures, scenes, worlds flitted by one after another. The incoherent chattering/screams of long forgotten races accompanied them. The chaotic nature of the message pervaded my brain. The sounds and images slithering through my head were too much, and I screamed in horror only to find no sound leaving my mouth.

Blood Red, then Black, then nothing.

I gasped for air.

I had seen the vision on my television numerous times, but it did not even come close to conveying the horrors I had just witnessed. If I hadn't been insane, I surely was now. I very slowly opened my eyes.

_Wait, wasn-_

A bright flash of green assaulted my pupils as the beacon shattered in front of us. The front of my body was seared by the following explosion, and I gotta tell ya, the impact of the explosion itself really fucking hurt. I could hear Kaidan yell in agony, the light show from the beacon causing his implants to flare up again. I hit the ground face first, which just added to the un-pleasantry. I could hear Shepard land with a thud farther behind me.

"Shepard!" Williams yelled again as she rushed to her side.

I groaned as I tried push myself off the ground.

_This has not been a pleasant day._

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

**So you might ask "Stache, did we get a POV from Shepard in the last chapter?" And to that I would say "yes".**

**As you can see on the story summary, I have three characters (that I plan to have POV's for) which are the OC, Shepard herself, and Joker which I think will be a neat little addition. The next chapter might favor our current hero a little bit but we'll definitely see the other two come Chapter 5. I can safely say they will be much longer than the 5 lines I had given Shepard in Chapter 2.**

**You might also ask "Stache, I keep getting notifications for when you update your story. But I don't see any new chapters? Why are you spamming my mail!?"**

**To that question, I can just say Sorryyyyyyyyyy.**

**I'm kind of a perfectionist, and I want to make sure that my work meets MY standards, the best I know I can do. After hammering out a chapter, I'll go over it a couple times before I'm satisfied with it and then upload it here. Then I go over it again for any wording I don't particularly like or grammar/spelling mistakes. Once I'm done, then I add it to the story. Of course, there STILL might be mistakes or things I don't like after that, so I'll go back, edit it, and reload it. I've already done this a couple times to those who get the updates.**

**Tbh, I don't know if those of you following get alerts for chapter editing or just for new ones being added but I advise you disable the alerts for when an existing chapter is edited if able. You might not even notice the changes rereading the chapter, but I do, at least. To those of you who already read the chapters and don't want to reread the small change I made from "them to him," I feel ya.**

**Just wanted to give a heads up for why it seems like I'm spamming your box to look at my story. Its not because I'm trying to boost my views to inflate my own ego, its just because I'm altering the story so I don't cringe when I'm rereading it myself.**

**In any case, thanks for understanding!**

**Until next time, catch y'all later!**


	4. Beacon Blues

"SHEPARD!" Williams shouted rushing to her side.

By the time I got to my feet, I saw that both soldiers were huddled over Shepard.

"She has a pulse," Kaidan said, taking his fingers off her neck.

"Hey, don't worry guys, I'm fine too," I groaned, which found myself a glare from Williams. I ignored it. "Alenko, she's probably only unconscious." I winced I felt a sharp pain in my stomach. "See if you can radio the Normandy to have the med bay ready for her though...just in case."

He hovered over her for a few more seconds before looking up. "Right."

"Who died and put you in charge?" the chief interjected.

"Just trying to help," I replied back, returning her gaze.

I noticed Kaidan also eyeballing me as he talked to the SR-1 over his headpiece.

_What? What did I say?_

He looked at me for a couple more seconds before turning to the Chief.

"Hey Williams, he had the right idea," Kaidan said getting off the radio. "Joker found a spot to land but it's a ways off. We're going to have to carry her to the ship. Grab her other arm." He lifted Shepard on his shoulder. Ashley made a move to do the same.

"Wait!" They both looked up. "What if we get ambushed on the way?" I stammered. "Wouldn't one of you two be better equipped to cover whoever carries the Commander back to the ship?"

Ashley looked at me grudgingly. "Don't drop her."

"Of course," I said smiling in her direction, hefting Shepard's left arm on my shoulders.

_Sweet._

That got me to the Normandy. Now I just had to figure out a way to get ON to the Normandy.

* * *

><p>The walk back was silent and relatively peaceful. Progress was slow though, as Ashley regularly made hand motions to halt, scouting ahead for any drones that might have been patrolling our area.<p>

As we hiked up a hill, I thought about what had gone down at the spaceport.

As much as I hated to admit it, I was useless back there. I had only killed two Geth, so I could be sure that my skill with a gun wouldn't get me any special recommendations from the squad. And I obviously had no idea about tech. My failure in disarming the bomb proved that.

_Huh, speaking of tech..._

My eyes lit up as the faint orange glow of an omni-tool appeared around my right hand.

"Uh, what are you doing?" Kaidan said as he glanced over to me, puzzled.

"Oh, wasn't sure if it was working or not. Just wanted to check."

_Uh...Omni-tool power down?_

It faded away.

_Well...that's nice to have._

I turned my attention back to the task at hand.

_I still need a story to get me onto the Normandy. I don't think just carrying Shepard back would get me on the ship with Kaidan and Williams._

I mulled the thought over for a second...

_Why was Williams even invited onto the Normandy in the first place?_

She was just some random soldier Shepard and Kaidan ran into on the way there. And the same went for Garrus, Wrex, and Tali for that matter. I guess one reason Williams was recruited was because she was part of the Alliance. The rest of them though were all just random aliens you kind of just ran into during the game. Total strangers you afterwards just let onto the ship and join your crew.

_Well at least they could all handle themselves in a fight..._

That was clear enough. I didn't have Tali's smarts, Garrus' skill with a rifle, or Wrex's panache going for me. I went back to my own scenario.

_Did I actually have any skills of my own that I could market? It definitely didn't seem like I woke up with any special talents. No noticeable skills with a gun, no Biotics, no nothing. I had gotten the Prothean vision along with Shepard but..._

_...I really don't want to relive that experience in any way, shape or form._

All I had besides that was my armor, my predator and apparently an omni-tool. Well, those and...

I thought it over in my head.

_Hmm...yeah...that...that might work..._

A grin spread across my face. If the story didn't get me into the Normandy as one of the crew, it would at least intrigue them enough to take me along with them.

* * *

><p>Shepard was beginning to get heavy.<p>

I looked towards a large valley we were passing. It extended as far as my eye could reach, but my view was mostly obscured by the large columns of smoke rising from the lowland. Giant towers black with char burned along the valley's ridge. The planet itself had grown darker still, with smog choking the sky. It looked like the planet itself was dying.

"There it is."

I turned my ahead away from the bleak landscape back to the path ahead. Past a group of trees in front of us was the Normandy, docked in a clearing, surrounded by what seemed to be the walls of a quarry. I could only see the back of it, but the sight was still incredible, the scale of the ship itself tremendous. A large ramp slowly lowered from the Normandy as we got closer.

Captain Anderson, followed by a retinue of guards, walked out from it to greet us. Williams who had taken point the entire trek decided to fall behind us. Kaidan freed his arm to give a salute to Anderson, who had stopped at the base of the ramp. I struggled to support Shepard's limp body on my own.

"How bad is it?" He questioned, looking down at Shepard's head. It was dangling unceremoniously several inches above the ground. I struggled to get her upright until Anderson's wing-men helped me pick her up.

"She's still breathing, but best get Doctor Chakwas to have a look," Kaidan said as he watched them lay her on a stretcher and carry her back into the Normandy.

"Already planned too," Anderson replied. Then he continued "What the hell happened down there?"

He glanced toward me quickly and then did a double take. He stared at me long and hard before moving his eyes over my shoulder. "I thought this was Jenkins." he said, returning to look at Alenko. "Wha-"

"Hey Captain?" I could overhear from Anderson's headpiece. "Are we gonna take off anytime soon? Because I reallllllly don't think this is the best time to be having a nice chat."

_Classic Joker._

"Start her engines. We're taking off now." He ushered us inside the cargo bay as the thrusters of the Normandy begun to thrum. Once the ramp locked into place behind us, the entire ship lurched forward. I felt a slight sense of vertigo as the Normandy propulsed itself away from the ground, and as I also assumed, left the planet's surface. Anderson stopped short of the elevator and turned back around to face our group.

"I need a rundown of what exactly happened on that planet lieutenant."

"It was bad Captain. Once we made landing, we only got a short distance before we were ambushed. Jenk-"

_I wouldn't have thought that we'd be debriefed in the garage..._

I took stock of my surroundings. Behind my left was the Mako, the BTR tank of tomorrow, sort of also resembling a large, futuristic range rover. It had a pretty sizable mass accelerator cannon attached on its top. I looked on in wonder as I imagined all the amazing adventures that we would have in it.

_I swear, everything so far has pretty much been incredible..._

"-lled Saren-"

I looked back in time to see Anderson's shock when Kaidan dropped Saren's name.

Deciding to look right, I could see the team's lockers, work bench, and what was to be Wrex's space. The area still felt like a weird place to have a conversation. Then I looked back to Anderson to find that two marines still stood behind him, eyeing me.

_Now it made sense...you wouldn't want to invite complete strangers onto your secret warship. They were screening us first._

Just because I was on the Normandy didn't mean I was out of the woods yet.

I rehearsed my lines a couple more times before Kaidan wrapped up his story. "- and then we arrived here at the LZ."

Anderson looked to Williams first.

"So you were the only survivor of the 212 stationed here?"

"Yes sir," she said somberly.

"I saw the destruction from up here. I can't imagine what it was like on the ground." He paused. "I'm sorry for your loss Ms...Wi-"

"Gunnery Chief Williams Sir!"

The corner of his lips curved upwards. "Well _Chief_ Williams, if Command approves it...how would you feel about being transferred to the crew of the Normandy? We could use someone of your expertise."

She was clearly awestruck by the offer.

"I..It'd be an honor sir!"

"Good, Private Fredericks will give you a tour of the ship. I'd like a mission report later from you too."

"Of course sir!" The Chief saluted and then followed Fredericks into the elevator, with the door shutting slowly behind them. Anderson was now facing me. He stared at my face with an incredibly intense look.

"And you're the Alliance investigator they found?"

_Go time._

"Oh, Alenko must've misspoke, I'm not with the Alliance...Captain. Just a free-lance investigator hired to take care of a small smuggling problem." Anderson looked extremely puzzled. Hell if I knew why. I took a breath before I gave them the rest of the spiel. "And I just want to say thanks for allowing me on your vessel. Really needed a ride out of there...if there's anything I could do for you, just let me know. I'd be glad to help! Whether it be helping around the ship or giving a detailed account of the turian that kille-"

"Are you sure Saren was his name?" Anderson interjected.

"Uh yeah, it was definitely him. I'd recognize that Turian Spectre anywhere."

"You know of him?" Anderson looked surprised.

"What? Of course I do! How could I not?!" I turned to Kaidan and feigned a look of surprise.

"The youngest Turian to be inducted into the Spectres? The guy who single-handedly wiped out the Grim Skulls? One of the most out-spoken alien critics of huMANITY!?...Yeah I've heard of him."

_And my mom said that video games would never help me in life..._

_...although all of that information did come from a book._

"A lot of that is classified information," Anderson replied sternly.

"When you have the job I do, you tend to end up getting dirt on a lot of people, regardless of whether you want it or not."

He raised an eyebrow at me.

"I'm positive it was him. Mean looking bastard, silver skin, blue cybernetic eyes, a giant hunk of metal for a-" I took a moment to think.

_Which side?!_

I guessed. "— left arm...?"

Anderson closed his eyes in frustration at hearing this.

"I can't see why one of the council's most trusted Spectres would lead a massacre like this though," I thought out loud. "Especially with such a weird ally like the Geth."

Anderson opened his eyes again. "And you're sure Saren and the Geth were working together?"

"If they weren't, they didn't give a rat's ass when he walked into a group of them and started ordering them around."

"Captain, the other colonist we found with him reported the same thing."

Anderson brought a hand to his face.

"The Council is not going to like hearing this...If this is true, they're going to want evidence."

_This was my ticket in._

Anderson turned to the other marine behind him. "Emerson, open a channel with Ambassador Udina, I'll need to speak with him in a moment."

Emerson nodded and entered the elevator that had just returned to the garage. I saw my chance and took it.

"Hey, that guy killed a lot of good folks down there. If testifying as a witness could help, I'd be glad to. It's the least I can do for you since you guys practically saved my life," I said, exactly as I had practiced in my head.

"I appreciate that Mr...Shield was it?" he asked raising an eyebrow.

"Yup, glad to help!"

Anderson stared at me for a good amount of time before he turned to Kaidan and spoke.

"This entire situation stinks to high heaven...it certainly won't help our case when they hear that the beacon was destroyed..."

"Hey, if it makes you feel any better, I'm sure whoever would have touched that thing would have gotten really messed up," I prattled.

He looked back to me.

"When you and Shepard got attacked by the beacon, did anything out of the ordinary happen? Alenko said it had you both in some kind of energy field for quite a while. Both of you were apparently in some kind of trance?"

"I can't remember exactly what happened," I lied. "You should ask Shepard when she wakes up, she'll probably be able to tell you more than me. She was a lot closer to it."

Anderson sighed and motioned for us to follow him into the elevator that had just come back down.

After he pushed the button for the next floor, he turned around to face us. "Alenko, I'm leaving it up to you for where...our guest will be staying while he's on board." His eyes met mine. I felt him peering into my soul. "Please, make yourself at home while you're on the Normandy." He paused for a second. I felt like he was waiting for me to say something. "...Just be mindful of what you touch." Turning his back to both of us as the elevator opened again, he finished with "Excuse me, I need to file a report on this."

As he walked away, Kaidan turned towards me.

"So uh...I guess let me show you where our bunks are."

We turned around the elevator and entered the dining hall. The bunk room wasn't much further past it, past the hallway where the sleeping pods used to be. We found a couple crew members were already catching some sleep in the beds.

"If you need anything, I'll be at the station over there writing my mission brief," he said as he pointed back towards the dining area. "I guess you should try to catch some rest before we dock. But if you feel the need for a quick checkup though, the med bay is over there." He motioned to Chakwas' office. "...nice meeting you," he added before turning around.

He only took a couple of steps before I stopped him for just one more important question.

"...could you point me to the bathroom?"

* * *

><p>I struggled for a looooong time before I finally figured out how to unlatch the bottom portion of my armor. I let out a sigh of relief after I finished the task. As I stood there in front of the urinal, I thought of my next move.<p>

_Shepard was going to wake up in something like 12 to 15 hours, so I have some time to kill. If I reveal that I received the same vision as Shepard when she wakes up, that would definitely score me some brownie points. Although, if I had to relive the vision again after getting the Prothean Cipher or every time Liara wants to meld, I don't think I could handle it. _

The mere thought of the experience at the spaceport chilled me to the bone. I decided against it.

_I'm not going to mention it if they don't ask. In any case, I'm still only with the Normandy gang until Saren's trial receives a verdict. I have from here until then to come up with a plan to ingratiate myself with the crew..._

As I finished up at the latrine and waddled over to the sink, I continued my train of thought.

_Am I still sticking with the elaborate back story?_

With what I was claiming, I could expect extreme back lash if it didn't work out as planned. But...

_It's the only option where I can use the ace up my sleeve no questions asked._

After splashing some water on my face, I looked up at the mirror. I froze after seeing the face staring back.

_...That's new._

While strange, it was a face I was familiar with. Kind of.

It was rectangular, possessing a jawline that could chisel granite. Black hair covered its head, kept short and parted to the side. Dark brown eyes stared back at me, sitting below thick eyebrows slanted down, giving the owner a constant look of disappointment. An aquiline nose was placed between the eyes, with the rest of the face plagued by an immense amount of stubble.

_This is the Shepard I was familiar with._

Though the face also looked fatigued. The eyes staring back at me were sunken in with bags under them, looking like they hadn't rested in ages. The creases lining it told me that this was someone probably just entering their 30's too. The face I saw could definitely be one of a gruff PI. One to fit my story.

_Cliché after cliché..._

So, I had no memory of my name or personal information, only waking up with memories of what I had done this past week. While I could picture the faces of loved ones, I just couldn't remember their names. And B, along with losing my memories, I have also apparently taken on the appearance of Shepard...My Shepard. Though I noticed it was not quite a carbon copy of the "Commander" I knew. His hair was much darker than I had made it in game. "Shepard" was tanner than I had remembered too.

_Might be the light. Might have been due to the switch from 2n__d__ gen console graphics to real life..._

Deciding I had stared at my face long enough, I turned off the faucet.

* * *

><p>I let out a long yawn after exiting the bathroom, having spent another good chunk of time re-latching my armor's lower straps. Some shut-eye couldn't hurt I thought as I walked back toward the bunk room. There was just one more thing I needed to do...<p>

_Omni-tool..._

It didn't appear.

_Omni-tool...Activate!_

Nothing.

I waved my hand around a couple of times before it finally showed up.

_I thought you responded to thought._

It flickered.

_Hmmmmm, Omni-tool...search "Commander Shepard" on the extranet._

Nothing happened.

I ended up fiddling around with it in bed for a while before just settling for the alarm function.

_11 hours...that would give me more than enough time to get acquainted with the crew before Shepard woke up in the medbay._

I yawned again as my eyes got heavier and heavier.

_The war zone I survived today had certainly been draining..._

As I curled up into the inviting warmth of the bed, it grew harder and harder to worry about my current situation.

_Memory loss. New identity. Different galaxy?...I'll sort it all out tommorrow._

I closed my eyes and readily drifted asleep.

My retinas' were immediately burned by a searing white light.

_MY EYESSS, CAN I NOT GET ONE SECOND OF PEACE?!_

Blinking, I tried to find where the light had emanated from. Once my eyes adjusted, all I saw was darkness. I pondered for a second if I had gone blind before I saw my arm. Everything was just really...dark. There was no other way to describe it. It was like someone had just thrown me out the air lock. I wondered if it had something to do with the Prothean vision. I really hope it didn't.

_...speaking of airlocks and Protheans...Javik...I cannot wait to meet YOUR Prothean ass..._

I dwelled on the fact that I could have just spent the next few years of my life looking for him back on Eden Prime. I was immediately distracted from this train of thought as something came into focus out of the abyss.

A blue-tinted square had flickered into existence before me.

It quickly grew larger and larger, the images on its surface became sharper and sharper.

_Is that really a..._

I took a second to register what was in front of me.

Skill Rank (0-7)

Pistol - 0

Shotguns - 0

Assault Rifles - 0

Sniper Rifles - 0

Adrenaline Rush - 0

First Aid - 0

Electronics - 0

Decryption - 0

Fitness - 0

Combat Mastery - 0

Persuasion - 0

*Locked*

_Available Points: 3_

Three things crossed my mind.

1:

_Is this for real?...Because this will solve a lot of problems._

_2:_

_And what does each rank go to? 7?...This is going to take forever to fill if I get three points at a time..._

3:

_...This really is a fucking video game._

_...And 4:_

_AM I NEVER GOING TO SLEEP AGAIN?!_

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

**Alrighty, sooooo I had this whole concept for the story that our hero would "get more skilled" over the course of his travels with Shepard. It was kinda derailed by the restrictions of converting word documents to ff's story format. A beautiful data table when I copied and pasted it, all the skills and their bonus abilities turned into a jumbled mess when I opened the file. The spacing and imaginary margins I created unfortunately did not stay either. I really wanted to include this plot point though which is why you have this sad, chintzy string of words before you. As our story progresses, you'll get updates on his progress with it, and hopefully you'll be able to see these changes within the narrative too.**

**In the Next Chapter: Joker's Two-Cents, Shepard Awakens, and Hello Council!**

**Tune in Next Time for 'Mass Effective : A Hero Made'!**


	5. Crew Concerns

"And the beacon...?"

"One of the humans might have used it."

Argh.

It jerked his head.

RaaRGH.

It threw his chair across the room.

ARGHHH.

It gripped her face with his talons.

Her azure eyes showed no hint of fear as he peered into them. He spoke.

"...This human...must be eliminated."

* * *

><p>One of the Normandy's many screens lit up before him.<p>

_A spike in the primary core huh?...let's see if trimming the compensators helps with that..._

He clicked one of the flashing buttons on the display before him.

"Joker, the number eleven lithium heat sink just started venting and it looks like the one across from it is too. Did you do something to the thrusters?"

_Sigh._

"I saw a spike in the Normandy's drive core. I just adjusted the compensators to decimal one-two."

"That would explain it. Joker, if the ship's drive cores are ever acting up like that, you should just reduce the amount of Hydrogen reacting in the thruster's reaction chambers. Doing that reduces the strain on the engines and reduces our heat emissions too."

Joker struggled to keep a straight face after hearing that.

"Rosey, as you know, doing that that would reduce the Normandy's maneuverability. And I don't know if you had noticed, but I just had to _maneuver_ past a fleet of Geth warships."

He definitely had not been expecting to do that when he woke up this morning.

"You're right. Although generating all that heat and releasing it Kind of defeats the purpose of the ship's stealth systems. And that's _Ensign Draven_ to you."

"And I thought _my_ _mom_ was a bad backseat driver."

Rosey rolled her eyes and swiveled her chair back around to her haptic interface.

_Besides, if the Geth had seen us, you could be sure I would still be using the Tantalus core to be moving us instead of the ship's thrusters. Whenever the Normandy's IES isn't in use, the ship put off enough heat to signal our position to anyone in the system holding a thermometer._

He wouldn't have risked it if they had still been anywhere near Eden Prime.

Joker turned his attention back to the Normandy's window. He looked on in wonder at the view before him.

_Ah, the great endless expanse of space...creeps me the hell out. We have enough weirdos to deal with on a regular basis without evil robots appearing out of the blue to kill us all._

His memories of their most recent mission were still fresh in his mind. He patted the arm of his chair tenderly.

_Glad I got to put you through your paces and see what you got baby. If it wasn't for your stealthyness and me being the best god damn helmsman in the fifth fleet, the crew would probably be drifting around in space right now._

He shuddered at the thought.

And had he even been thanked? There was no, "Hey Joker, thanks for bravely landing in the middle of a warzone and idling in the area despite the fleet of enemy cruisers patrolling the sky," or "Wow Joker, you're sooooo amazing. I wish I could be as cool as you!" There hadn't even been as much as a pat on the back.

_Ingrates._

He heard the sound of boots clanking along the bridge toward him.

_The Captain was still reporting the mission to the pencil pushers on the Citadel. Already got introduced to the newest marine taking Jenkins' place. __God rest his soul. And after a mission, Kaidan tended to spend a lot of time doing who knows what at his little station. That only leaves..._

He swiveled his chair around.

"Don't worry Commander, you don't have to thank me for anything. I just prefer-"

He stared at the individual in front of him.

"You're not Shepard."

He had thought it'd been Kaidan for a second before he actually sized up the guy.

He was about the same height, had the same spacesuit, the only difference between him and Kaidan really was the amount of facial hair he had. That and the fact that he made the Lieutenant look like a kid fresh out of boot camp. A smile formed across the stranger's face.

"Sorry to disappoint. I can take a message for her if you'd like."

Joker glanced around at the rest of the crew on the bridge to see if they had noticed him.

_Is there a complete stranger standing in the middle of our ship or am I just seeing things again._

"Do I, uh, know you?" he asked squinting at the new guy.

"No, I don't believe we've had the pleasure. The name's Shield...Marauder Shield. Thought I'd just come up to say thanks to the guy who saved our asses."

Joker decided to indulge him.

"Well, you found him. Chief Helmsman First Flight Lieutenant Moreau. But to you, it's Joker."

"Nice to meet ya...Joker. I'm guessing you were the one I overheard from Anderson's radio."

Joker looked quizzically at him.

"Yeah, that might've been me."

Shield crossed his arms in front of him.

"I didn't realize the Alliance allowed crewmen to back sass their commanding officers."

_Wow. I've known this guy for like two seconds and he was already criticizing me. _

Joker didn't make an attempt to hide his irritation.

"Well, none of them are as talented as me. When you're the most skilled pilot in the Alliance, you're allowed to have some snark. If I wasn't flying this here ship, I'd probably be making a fortune navigating Eezo rigs along the stars."

He waved his hand across the room for emphasis. Rosey butted in.

"Better not let the Captain hear that or he might make your dream come true."

"You always have to just rain on my parade, don't cha," Joker snipped back.

"Someone's gotta keep you in line up here while the Captain's busy."

"You should just learn to tune him out like we do," Ensign Gladstone piped in next to her. "We'd all go insane otherwise."

"Oh ha ha."

The stranger had started chuckling himself before wincing in pain, holding his side. He was obviously taking a little too much pleasure in how Joker was being viciously attacked by his coworkers. The two servicemen continued their little chat while the guy started to stare absently at them.

"So uh, I'm guessing you came in with the landing team?"

He didn't respond.

"Uh, hello?"

He jerked his head back to Joker, apparently engrossed in their conversation.

"Oh sorry, I must've spaced for a moment," he said sheepishly.

"Don't worry about it, happens to me all the time. So, judging by your appearance, were you part of the 212 down on Prime? The new girl mentioned that was her unit, Chief...ahh what was her name...I wanna say Kimberly?"

He stared past Joker into the Normandy's shutter window.

"I just happened to see the guy responsible for the attack. I'll just be here with you all until we reach the Citadel for the dude's trial."

"Well, it just so happens that we'll be reaching it pretty soon. Should only be about an hour or so before we get to the relay."

His eyebrows raised slightly after hearing that and looked down at his arm, activating his omni-tool. He started clicking it. Then he kept clicking it. He opened and closed the same application at least six times. Joker gave him a strange look.

_Is this guy for real?_

"Looks like you're having some trouble with your omni-tool there bud."

He looked back up, cheeks flushing red. "Uh, yeah...it's a new model, still haven't quite figured out to how use it..." He looked back down, continuing to clack away on it. Apparently he thought pressing the button harder would fix the problem.

"Since my alarm went off, I haven't been able to figure out how to get the time to come up on this thing."

Joker just continued to stare at him as he futilely tried to get it to work.

"It looks like you're just opening and closing the extranet there."

He looked back up.

"Oh."

_Oh my god, has this guy never used an omni-tool before?_

"...Have you never used an omni-tool before?" Joker inquired, arching his brow.

He sighed, glancing to the other members of the bridge who had returned to being preoccupied with their duties.

"Honestly?...No."

Joker tried to hide the look of surprise on his face to no avail.

"Wow, what rock have you been living under?" Joker blurted. Shield shifted uncomfortably at the comment.

"I never really had much use for one up until recently," he started. "Could never really justify the purchase since it was kind of expensive too." It looked pretty awkward for him to talk about it. Joker regretted drawing attention to his ineptitude.

"...You know, I don't think anyone has ever used them, buuuut we have a data pad that might have a set of instructions to help with you that." The guy in front of him seemed to perk up.

Joker went on. "If you don't know how to use a data pad, I can't really help you there."

"You know, I think I'll take a look at that," he replied cheerfully.

Then they both stared at each other for a while.

_Oh._

"They should be in Chakwas' office," Joker added. "In her desk if I remember what the ship tour guide said correctly."

At the mention of Chakwas, he froze like a deer in headlights.

"...you know what. I just realized I have something I forgot to do."

He turned around to leave but looked back over his shoulder to the helmsman.

"Thanks for the advice Joker, I'll be sure to ask the doctor for where that data pad might be."

"Nice talking with ya," Joker muttered as the stranger started to rush back the way he came.

"You Too!" he replied back, jogging down the bridge.

Joker swiveled his chair back to the ship's bow.

_Well alright then...wonder what I can find on the radio._

* * *

><p>"What do you think you're doing here?!"<p>

"Uh, I just wanted to see how she was doing."

There was a pause.

"Am I not allowed in here?"

"Ugh."

Shepard groaned as her eyes were assaulted by the bright fluorescence of the lights above her.

"Doctor? Doctor Chakwas? I think she's waking up," a female voice said.

_It was that marine they had ran into back on Eden Prime. Williams._

Shepard gritted her teeth as she pulled herself upright, forcing herself to open her eyes.

_What was she doing here?_

She found herself staring at a sterile white wall. The Medbay. She had begun to turn herself around before Chakwas stepped into view before her.

"You had us worried there Shepard. How are you feeling?"

Doctor Chakwas looked at her concerned, holding a data pad in her left hand. Probably contained information on her vitals.

"Like Shit," she muttered. "How long was I out?"

"About thirteen hours, something happened down there with the beacon I think."

_Thirteen Hours?! What the Hell._

Williams piped up behind her.

"It's my fault. I must have triggered some kind of security field when I approached it. You had to push me out of the way."

"Where's the beacon now?" Shepard asked, closing her eyes as her memory started to come back to her.

"Probably back where we left it. We were a little more concerned with getting you back to the ship safe and sound than with securing a pile of junk."

Shepard froze as he spoke. She slowly turned around to face the voice that had just addressed her. The man that accompanied them to the beacon stood to the left of the marine from Eden Prime. The ferocity of Shepard's stare made him take a couple steps back.

"Uh-"

He barely had time to open his mouth before she sprang off the bed and sent the man flying to the wall with her biotics, pinning him there.

He cried in pain as his back slammed against it.

"What THE FUCK," he shouted, struggling against the mass effect field holding him place.

"Commander-" Chakwas gasped before Shepard cut her off.

"What the hell is he doing on this ship," she growled at them.

"Thi-" She doubled over as she felt a sharp pain in her chest, gripping her sides tightly. The blue aura shimmering around the man faded away, causing him to fall to the ground.

Ashley rushed to her side to support her. Chakwas just stood in place, appalled by Shepard's actions.

"Commander, I shouldn't have let you get up. Some of your ribs were fractured when they brought you aboard. They should heal relatively quickly with the treatment I gave you but you shouldn't exert yourself." She then directed an arm at the individual heaving on the ground. "And he's one of the reasons that you made it back here in one piece."

"Bullshit," Shepard muttered, pushing Ashley off her. "Has he been able to just waltz around the ship this entire time?!"

"Shepard, I trust him as far as I can throw him but-"

She held a hand to the soldier's face.

The man lying on the ground looked up at her bewildered. "What the hell did I do to deserve-" he shut his eyes as he curled in pain. Chakwas made a move to approach him but Shepard stopped her again.

"You lied to us when we were back at that spaceport."

He turned his head back toward her, looking as if he had no idea what she was talking about. She clenched her fist as another sharp sensation of pain snaked its way to her brain.

"When we first saw you...you claimed that you had seen the Turian that killed Nihlus through the crates you were hiding behind."

His eyes begun to widen as he realized he had been caught.

"But that dock worker claimed you had them shut. You then backtracked and said you had just seen it before you had hid."

Ashley's eyes widened with the realization too.

"You're right...why the hell did you lie to us?" she demanded turning to him.

His eyes flitted between them, trying to scrounge up an excuse. Shepard went on.

"I had wondered that myself. I hadn't understood why he had gotten us those supplies from the smuggler either. Then he tried to invite himself along. That's when I realized the most likely answer...he killed Nihlus himself."

The horrified expression that crept across his face brought her pleasure.

_He knew he's been caught._

Shepard tensed, ready for him to make a move to escape.

"The dockworker made up the story about the other turian because the actual murderer had been right there. Then he tried pinning it on what's his name and got us those mods so we'd think he was on our side."

"WHAT? NO-" He was cut off before Shepard yelled at him to shut up and continued.

"I only let you come with us to see what you would try. While you didn't attempt anything on the tram, when we were fighting through the space port, you only killed one Geth. One."

"Th-that was because I've never been in a-," he stammered before Shepard hit him with another biotic field, causing his head to snap back into the wall behind him. She doubled over after using her biotics. They both were suffering from the act.

"Commander Stop! You hurting yourself as much as you're hurting him!"

Chakwas took out a stim and made a move to inoculate her arm. As it broke her skin, it immediately dulled her pain. The Doctor moved to do the same for Shield but Shepard didn't let her near him.

"The only way you would have known about that last detonator is if you had known it would be there in the first place!" she shouted at him.

He struggled to come up with a response.

"If I had set them up, why would have I warned you about them then?!" he cried.

"Because the Geth had already set them off without you!"

"What's going on in here!?"

Anderson moved his stare from Shepard to Shield who was lying sprawled on the ground. The Lieutenant stood behind him, coming over to see what all the commotion had been about too.

"This man lied to us when we first saw him!" She turned her gaze back from Anderson to the pathetic sight before her as he spoke up.

"Just because I misspoke, you think that immediately means I worked with that lunatic!?" He turned to Anderson, his eyes seemed to be pleading for help. "He butchered thousands down there!"

"What lunatic? As far as I know, you're the only one that knows why they attacked! Hell, you could have even led them there!"

His look of bewilderment only added to his guiltiness.

"Are you really saying that I led the Geth there? That I killed Nihlus!?"

Shepard knew she was taking a large leap to conclude that he had been the one to kill the Spectre, it didn't even seem like he knew how to hold a gun. If that other colonist hadn't agreed with him, she would've thought he had made the Turian up too.

_But the Turian was made up. The colonist only said that because he was being held at gunpoint._

Even if he wasn't guilty of killing him, he had still made up everything he had said. He avoided her gaze the entire conversation, there was a delay whenever he opened his mouth, and he blatantly had tried to change the subject when the fallacy in his story was pointed out.

"Even if you didn't kill Nihlus, you were hiding something from us back then, and you're still hiding it from us now!"

She kept her gaze fixated him. He closed his eyes and then opened them, meeting her gaze head on for the first time since she had woken.

"If you really did think I was responsible for what happened there-"

She noticed Anderson was reeling at all the accusations.

"-why did you try to push me out of the beacon too?"

She remembered the events before the dream in vivid detail. She had tried to push him toward the ground before the screams of the dead had overwhelmed her.

"I did it reflexively..." she muttered. Then she raised her voice again. "The fact that the beacon was destroyed though only incriminates you further!"

"Shepard! There's no way he could have been accountable for that. He was caught in it too when it exploded!" She found Alenko staring at her defiantly. "He even helped us carry you back to the Normandy through a war zone when he could have left us there just as easily."

"...he's right Commander," Williams almost whispered. "Without him, we would have been sitting ducks for the Geth trying to get you back onboard."

Their defense of him infuriated her.

_He just did it to get onto their ship. He was hiding something, she just kn-_

"You want the truth?"

They had all turned their eyes back towards the man lying on the ship's floor. He had planted both his hands firmly on the ground and was attempting to push himself up. She had almost sent another mass effect field his way before another white flash of pain crossed her eyes. She reopened them to find him slumped on the wall, trying to use it for support.

"You're right...I was lying to you Shepard."

The statement actually elicited a gasp from the Doctor.

"I was lying to all of you about who I was. I'm not a detective. And I did make up that story about seeing Saren before I hid."

Anderson gave him a cold stare. "For what purpose did you try blaming what happened on Eden Prime on him?"

Shield met his gaze.

"Don't get me wrong, the Spectre Saren was responsible for the attack. And if that colonist was telling the truth, he killed Nihlus too. We knew Saren had been planning to attack a colony in the Verge for a long time. We just didn't know which..."

"We?" Ashley asked incredulously.

"Yes...we." he replied.

Shepard kept her eyes focused on the man before her.

_What was his game._

"We were sent to several different colonies throughout the cluster to watch for any sign of his activity. I had only actually arrived a couple days prior before Saren and his synthetics attacked...I saw his Geth lay waste to entire platoons. When they started slaughtering everyone, I thought I was at the end of the line. I hid myself behind those crates just hoping that I'd at least be given a quick death."

The corner of lips curled when he looked at her.

"But fate would have it differently, as in rode the famed Commander Shepard. They tried to stop you and you just gunned them down like that. Pop-pop-pop." He mimicked a gun with his hand. "You made it look easy."

Shepard noticed that everyone in the room was now hanging on his every word.

"I saw that the only way I was getting out of that nightmare was by tagging along with you and your squad. So I came up with that bullshit story and followed you guys through that army of Geth."

He paused before looking at Anderson.

"We had no idea why Saren would even want to attack a human colony. Not until I saw the beacon."

He turned his gaze back toward her.

"He saw whatever was in that beacon Shepard. And I know you saw it too."

The images and sounds from the dream immediately started drifting in and out of her mind.

_Had he seen the nightmare too..._

The Gunnery chief asked the same question.

"Again, who is _we_?"

He hesitated for a moment before taking a deep breath, noticeably wincing from whatever injury Shepard had caused. Then his face hardened.

"I'm an agent of the Shadow Broker."

"Shadow Broker?" Ashley asked.

Shepard had never heard the term before.

"He's an information broker. One of the best in the galaxy." Anderson answered, looking at the man with concern.

"THE best," Shield corrected him. Alenko spoke up.

"They say that with all the information he has, the Broker could start a war between every civilization of the galaxy in less than an hour."

"So you're telling me that you guys knew there was going to be an attack and didn't warn us!?" Williams snapped, ignoring what the Lieutenant had said.

"We don't give out information for free and the Alliance never asked. Besides, we had no idea where he was going to attack, if it all," the agent shot back.

Anderson gave him a grave look. "Who gave the Shadow Broker this information on Saren?"

"I can't just-" he glanced for a second at her before turning back to Anderson. "All I know is that someone tipped the Shadow Broker off about him. He sent us to check it out."

He grimaced and slid back to the floor, grabbing his chest.

"Here let me get you something to help," Chakwas said as she crossed the room to her desk. The med bay went silent.

He had obviously practiced the alibi, not giving up even one hint that he might've been lying. Shepard still didn't trust him.

"So what do we do about you," Shepard said, crossing her arms.

His eyes seemed empty now as she stared into them, devoid of any emotion.

"I say we throw him in the brig," Williams chimed in.

"We don't have one," Anderson replied. "And as the Captain of this ship, that's for me to decide. Williams, Alenko, you're dismissed."

"Yes sir!" they both replied. The Chief gave an accusatory glare at the slumped Shield before walking out. The Lieutenant followed her out.

"Look," he said, drawing her and Anderson's attention. "I'm sorry that I lied to you about who I was, I didn't want to...expose my cover if I didn't have to. But after seeing what that bastard did to Prime...I was serious about offering my help Captain."

The Captain seemed to mull something over in his head. Shepard decided to give her two cents.

"I honestly don't see why we would need your help at all. We already have the testimony of that colonist who claimed Saren was present at Eden Prime. The only other way you could help is if we turned you over to the Alliance to see if you have anything else you'd like to share with them."

His face didn't betray a hint of emotion at the suggestion. She couldn't place when it happened, but his demeanor had changed at some point during the confrontation. Chakwas, after spending some time at one of the med bay's consoles, went to Shield and kneeled beside him, inoculating him with the same stuff she had given Shepard.

"That should help with the pain. I'd like to take a look at you once the Captain and Commander are done here."

"Thanks Doc," he replied.

He then turned toward the Captain who had finally taken his eyes off the ground and started to speak.

"Earlier, you mentioned that Saren had seen something in the beacon. I'm guessing you lied to me about not experiencing anything out of the ordinary when you were in contact with it."

"I honestly don't what I saw," he said, looking at the ground. "It was some kind of vision. Trying to describe it would have made me sound insane."

"Commander, when you were under, I did detect some unusual brain activity, abnormal beta waves. I also noticed an increase in your rapid eye movement, signs typically associated with intense dreaming."

Anderson turned to her. "Shepard?"

She hesitated as the details of the nightmare crept back into her mind. "I'm not sure what I saw either. Death. Destruction. Nothing's really clear. There were synthetics, Geth maybe, slaughtering people. Butchering them."

Shield winced, losing his facade as she described it.

"We need to report this to the Council."

"What, and tell them we had a bad dream?" Shield replied sarcastically.

Although Shepard was infuriated at how he had addressed the Captain, she agreed.

"They'll think we're crazy."

Anderson wasn't convinced. "Doctor Chakwas, could you let us talk in private for a moment?"

"Of course Captain," she replied, leaving the room.

Anderson waited until the door slid shut. "I won't lie to you Shepard. Things look bad. Nihlus is dead. The beacon was destroyed and the Geth are invading. The council's going to want answers. If both of you had these visions, they can't ignore that!"

She frowned at the mention of those freaks on the Citadel.

"The Council can kiss my ass. I won't let them blame me for losing the beacon. I did nothing wrong. The Alliance can solve this problem without their help."

"I stand behind you Shepard. You're a damned hero in my book-" he reassured her. "-but we can't do this alone. It's Saren. That other turian. He's a Spectre, one of the best. A living legend. If he's working with the Geth, it means he's gone rogue."

Shield opened his mouth. "As a Spectre, he has access to files on everyone and everything. He has a vast amount of resources at his disposal and the ability to do whatever he pleases. Unless we confront the council about him, just relying on the Alliance won't help."

Anderson nodded in agreement with him. "We don't know what information was stored in that beacon. Lost Prothean technology? Blueprints for some ancient weapon of mass destruction? Whatever it was, Saren took it. But I know Saren. I know his reputation, his politics. He believes humans are a blight on the galaxy."

Anderson's speech grew in fervor as he started to pace back and forth. "This attack was an act of war! He has the secrets from the beacon. He has an army of geth at his command. And he won't stop until he's wiped humanity from the face of the galaxy!"

Shepard was taken aback at how passionately Anderson detested the Turian. "You two have history together?"

Anderson turned to face her. "Yes, and it didn't go well last time I came face to face with him. If he's gotten something from the beacon or found whatever he's looking for..."

Shepard would take her own life before she let a Turian attack human colonies with impunity. "He won't if I can help it. I'll find some way to take him down!"

She grew enraged when she noticed that Shield almost looked bored with their discourse. Anderson snapped her attention back to him. "That's why we need the Council on our side. As a Spectre, he can go anywhere, do almost anything. By proving he's gone rogue, we can revoke all of those advantages."

The realization hit her.

"So we expose Saren and the Council will revoke his Spectre status."

"Exactly Shepard. I'll contact the ambassador and see if he can get us an audience with the Council. He'll want to see us as soon as we reach the Citadel."

"So what about him?" She motioned toward Shield who now seemed close to dozing off.

Anderson hesitated. "He can stay aboard the Normandy until we reach the Citadel. Then once we get there, we'll escort him to the Council Chamber where he can give a testimony and afterwards we'll go our separate ways."

Shepard looked at him baffled. Shield eyes popped open at Anderson's statement, sharing her response.

"You're joking."

Anderson gave her a hard stare. "He hasn't done anything to harm the crew and hasn't broken any laws. He was honest with us too."

"What?! Only after he was forced too! We don't know have any idea of what he's done since he's come aboard."

"She's right," he said. "I had free reign around your ship for more than thirteen hours."

She stared at Shield in disbelief.

"I can't say I haven't noticed a couple things exploring the ship. Are you really sure you're okay with just letting me walk?" he asked Anderson.

His question baffled her.

_What the hell is his angle?!_

Thinking about it only got her angrier.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm assigning a marine to keep an eye on you until we dock...but I believe that your words are sincere."

She couldn't believe her ears.

"We should be getting near the relay. Maybe another hour. Shepard, head up to the bridge and tell Joker to bring us into dock once we're close. I still expect Chakwas wants to look at you." He turned to Shield. "I'll have Chakwas come back in. Private Emerson should be shortly here as your escort."

"Actually," Shield replied. "The Commander seems to really mistrust me. Would she be willing to watch me instead? She can see for herself if I'm up to no good and I can show her I'm only here to help. I'll probably be in the med bay with her 'til we get there anyway."

He thought for a moment. "That seems fine with me. Shepard?"

She leered at him. "I'll watch him Captain."

"Good. I'll see you both when we're ashore." He saluted. She returned it as he exited the door. Chakwas walked back in, immediately ordering them both into bed, and got to work on Shield's apparent injuries.

"Commander," he groaned as Chakwas tended to him.

"Stay quiet and rest, I'm surprised you were able to be walking around like you have been," Chakwas babied him.

"Sorry Doc, this will only take a sec."

Shepard decided to turn her head toward him.

"We got off on the wrong foot and I'm sorry for deceiving you."

His face seemed genuinely apologetic. But she didn't care. She watched him like a hawk, daring him to make a move.

"But I assure you, whatever my allegiance, I'm dedicated to taking that bastard down for what he's done. He deserves to pay."

"We'll see," Shepard grumbled back to him.

"I hope I can prove to you at some point that I'm being honest Commander."

* * *

><p>Chakwas had let them both out of bed when they heard Joker announcing they had entered the Exodus cluster's relay. The Doctor was amazed at the relative speeds their bodies were scheduled to recover. A couple more days and she said they would be walking around just fine. Before they left the room though, Shepard had made sure Shield knew that if he didn't stay in front of her at all times, he would get a bullet in the back of the head.<p>

As they exited, she saw Alenko and Williams conversing with each other next to the cafeteria. They roped her in as soon as she had gotten out of the room.

"Hey Commander," they both chimed in unison.

"Good to see you up," Alenko said.

"After what happened to Jenkins, the crew could use some good news. They'll be glad to hear you're okay," Williams muttered.

_What the hell was that tone she used._

"You have a problem with me, Chief?" Shepard hissed.

The marine furrowed her eyebrows. "You questioned my competence throughout the entire mission back on Prime!"

Alenko and Shield shifted awkwardly at the outburst.

"We'd just lost a man. I didn't know you or your capabilities. It was a bad time to integrate you into the team."

"That's fair," she replied coldly. "I just get a little defensive when someone thinks I can't hold my own."

"Best way to stop that is to show me you're competent. But I don't remember inviting you to come back onto the ship with us."

"You didn't. Captain Anderson did."

Shield nudged Alenko out of the corner of her eye. Kaidan narrowed his eyes at him before speaking up.

"Speaking of Jenkins, I was sad to see him go like that..."

Shepard turned her attention toward him. "He's a soldier, he knew the risks and so do you. You need to get used to people dying under your command."

He looked at her appalled. "I know that! It's just...it's been a hell of a shakedown cruise. Our first mission ends with one Spectre killing another. The Citadel Council's not gonna be happy about that. Probably use it to lever more concessions out of the Alliance."

_The Council?!_

"Fuck the Council. There's something big coming. If they're too blind to see it then it's on them. We work for the Alliance, you read me, Lieutenant?"

"Five by five, ma'am." Alenko and Williams gave each other a look. "So, what did the Captain say we should do about him?" He motioned to the man beside him.

"I have a name you know."

"Shut it," she growled. "I'm keeping an eye on him until we dock. He'll be with us until Saren is stripped of his Spectre status.

"Unless you guys decide you want to bring me along!" he smiled.

They all stared at him before turning away.

"Is there anything else before we head ashore?" the Lieutenant asked.

"For you? No. I just need to go speak with Joker."

"Oh, we'll go with you! We should just be exiting the Widow Relay."

_Great._

She made sure Shield stayed a couple steps in front of her as they walked up the stairs to the Command Center. The Chief and Alenko brought up their rear. Joker seemed to perk up as he heard them approaching.

"So I'm guessing you found that data pad Shield?"

Shield cursed under his breath

"No, I got a little...distracted."

She made a mental note to interrogate Joker about that later before she spoke. "Joker, what's our approach vector?"

Joker jumped at hearing her voice. He turned over his shoulder to look at her.

"Oh Commander, good timing! I was just about to bring us into the Citadel. See that taxpayer money at work."

He smirked at his own joke. Outside the Normandy's window was a bright purple tint coming from the dense gases and particulates that surrounded them. She couldn't see a thing past the smog and half-suspected Joker to crash into oncoming traffic. Her concerns were allayed as the enormous arms of the Citadel came into view. Williams and Shield ran to the window like excited children. Alenko positioned himself behind Joker's other shoulder.

"WOW, look at the size of that ship!" The marine could barely hide her excitement.

"The Destiny Ascension, the flagship of the Citadel Fleet," Alenko responded.

"Well size isn't everything," Joker muttered.

"Why so touchy Joker?"

"I'm just saying you need fire power too."

"It looks like it's got more than enough of that. I mean do you see that monster! Its main gun could rip through the barriers on any ship in the Alliance Fleet!"

"Good thing it's on our side then," Alenko added.

Shield stayed silent, opting to just stare out the window instead. His face was practically smashed against it.

"Citadel Control, this is S-S-V Normandy, requesting permission to land."

"Stand by for clearance, Normandy...Clearance granted. You may begin your approach. Transferring you to an Alliance operator."

It was the first time Shepard had actually seen the Citadel in person. She wasn't one for sight-seeing but she admitted to herself that the structure was impressive.

"Normandy, this is Alliance tower. Please proceed to dock four-two-two."

"Roger that, Alliance Tower, Normandy out."

Joker tapped a couple buttons on his haptic interface as the Normandy began descending toward the Citadel.

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

**Definitely hadn't thought this chapter would be as long as it is when I first began writing it. I also didn't think I would have as much trouble too. Most of it was due to addressing how I would write these two different POV's but also from the fact that I** was thinking short vignettes rather than lines and lines of dialogue. **  
><strong>

**I also wanted to do a solid depiction of Shepard's demeanor in this chapter, but since it was a critical building block for the plot of the game and her personal vendetta, I couldn't really skip through parts of dialogue like I've had in the story previously. Shepard isn't one to ignore her superiors or surrondings. Rearranging some of the scene to make sense was also pretty tough. Making it so the conversation led back to the game's script in a logical manner was particularly challenging.**

**And after it was all said and done, I didn't get to the Citadel and the Council like I had wanted too... :(**

**In any case, glad to get this one out of the way as we look forward to actually kicking off our journey! **

**In the Next Chapter: Turian Councillor Sparatus Hardlines, Asari Councillor Tevos makes no promises, and Salarian Councillor Valern Croaks...Literally! Getting the Council to Care!**

**Tune in next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


	6. The Turian's Trial

Once we were docked, Anderson had insisted that Williams stop at the Alliance embassy first for a psychological evaluation. He had wanted to make sure that the events she endured on Eden Prime had not affected her emotional well-being. After a lot of discussion, she eventually had given in and headed there with Shepard who still had yet to file her own report on the mission.

_That psychotic biotic..._

Her accusations on the Normandy had literally almost ended me up in some Alliance prison never to see the light of day again. In fact, had she convinced everyone that I'd been the one to kill Nihlus, they would never even have known about fucking Saren. Powell, dah bastahd, didn't even mention his name to my recollection, and the galaxy would've just fallen like that to the reapers within the year.

I tried my hardest not to have a breakdown at the thought.

I was just a single variable. One guy who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. And I had already almost single-handedly caused the end of the universe because I was such a bad liar.

_The butterfly effect I caused has already spiraled out of control._

I remembered like 50% of the conversation that happened in the med bay. There had definitely not been a scene in the game where half the Normandy was in it watching a show trial take place. The thought rattled me to my core. I had taken the gambit and played my hand. With the Shadow Broker in this universe being the literal illumanati, would he already know about my lie to them? Could I expect a reprisal for my bluff within the week? Thinking about the Yahg caused me to shudder.

_Not to mention that knowing what happens in this universe doesn't even matter if just being here has already screwed up the timeline so much..._

I just had to thank whatever force that sent me here for at least giving me the skill tree. I have to admit, I accidentally put all my points into the talent and committed before I had realized what I done-

_Definitely not going to make a mistake like that again...if I could help it..._

-but it looked like it had worked out. I know for a fact I couldn't hold a poker face even if my life depended on it, but I had done that as well as smoothly BS'ed my way into everyone's hearts.

_Obviously due in no short part to dumping all my points in 'persuasion' ..._

In Mass Effect 1, I had always been guilty of putting all my available points into the earliest available paragon or renegade slots, maxing them as soon as I could. Although it was an accident, it looked like old habits die hard.

I snapped to attention as Anderson finished talking to the Alliance representative and motioned for me and Kaidan to follow him into the Presidium.

_Despite the entire headache that Shepard had caused, I could at least enjoy the view..._

The simulated clouds and sky above us seemed extremely real, or real enough anyway. If I hadn't known better, I would've thought that we were just outside in between two really tall, really wide 22nd century buildings. Both of which just so happened to span the length of a city.

_I would never guess that I was in a giant ring floating in the middle of space...that was also supposed to be the catalyst for the destruction of all organic life in the Galaxy._

I shivered at the thought.

_The catalyst._

I put that tidbit at the back of my head as I decided to focus on the present. The fake sun rays still felt warm on my skin, and the sound of the Presidium's fountains were extremely calming. The conversations of the Elcor, Hanar, Asari, and Turians we passed made the entire area sound like an international food court. The entire thing was surreal.

I tried my hardest to not let the awesomeness of what I saw affect me. I was an agent of the Shadow Broker. If I had never seen the Citadel in person before, or another alien being for that fact, I would obviously be a phony. My mouth was still agape regardless as I took in the sights around us. As Kaidan and Anderson talked about the mission, the Council, and various other things I had no interest in, I just soaked in the experience.

_This is definitely much more pleasant than Eden Prime._

Most of the aliens had been too far away for me to really marvel at but we did happen to pass really close to a really short Volus-

_Although I guess all Volus are really short..._

-in a completely brown exosuit that was talking into his headpiece. I could hear their iconic *kssshhh* in between the foreign sounds coming out of his mouth.

Although something seemed a little off.

_...why-_

Kaidan interrupted my train of thought as he pointed out where Shepard and Williams were waiting for us. As we all reconvened in the front of the embassy suites, everyone exchanged some words, Shepard gave me a glare that I imagined would give a Krogan pause, and Anderson indicated that the Ambassador was still waiting for us. Marhcing past the lobby together, the receptionist there gave us a polite nod and sang us some kind of weird melody.

_...I GUESS that was nice..._

I just couldn't put a finger on it but something was off. I wondered if I was just tired from being robbed of sleep from the previous night. I actually had no idea if my body got its rest or not after the skill tree had popped up.

_I mean that thing could've been a sleep deprived hallucination..._

I sighed.

_Just like the rest of this._

I was still contemplating the idea when we entered Udina's room. He was currently shouting at some holograms.

"This is an OUTRAGE! The Council would step in if the Geth attacked a TURIAN colony!"

_Wow he's animated._

I frowned as I heard croaking coming from what I deemed to be the Salarian councilman's hologram. Now I noticed what was wrong.

I didn't have a translator.

It was hard for me to keep track of the discussion as I could only hear a quarter of it. Not that I would have really listened anyways I realized. I imagined I would soon grow tired of hearing the quartet and their misgivings about Shepard's actions. If I stuck around with Shepard that is.

_Do I realllllly still want to be on the Normandy after what just happened..._

Shepard was abrasive, intimidating, and hostile. Although mostly just towards me.

_That's not true. She apparently treated Williams pretty badly too before they ran into me._

I strengthened my resolve.

_I had come this far. The psychopath was obviously going to cut a bloody swath through whomever she met._

The way she had just attacked me without provocation on the Normandy proved it. I rubbed my back. The bruises from when she had tossed me around were still fresh. My eyes popped open as a thought came across my mind.

_SHIT, she would totally kill Wrex on Virmire...Or only if I wasn't there to stop her._

The idea of the galaxy having one less Urdnot dropped my spirits. I also realized that without me, one of the two people in this room was destined to die there too. I was not going to let that happen.

_Although Williams was kind of unpleasant toward me. Not as much as Shepard was of course but still...NO._

I resigned myself to my fate. I WAS going to be on the Normandy after this trial. And I WAS going to give them my help whether Shepard wanted it or not. What else would I even do anyways?

_Chill at Chora's den. Afterlife. Bide my time until whatever drugs I took wore off__...Which might take awhile at the current rate this has lasted._

"-half your crew with you."

I turned my attention back to reality. The reality I was in anyways.

"Just the ground team from Eden Prime. In case you had any questions."

Alenko and Williams shot each other a glance while they hung their arms over the balcony.

"I have the mission reports. I assume they're accurate?"

God, I always had kind of glazed over him when he was on the screen but the dude's voice in real life-

_This isn't real life dude._

_...Shut up._

-was a lot more aggravating then I remembered.

Anderson and Udina continued their dialogue as I joined the two token human soldiers on the ledge overseeing the Presidium. I heard Shepard say something about "ass." My curiosity got the best of me and I decided to hock a loogie over the edge to see how long it took for it to fall. Alenko caught me in the act. He just looked at me funny. I shrugged my shoulders at him.

I turned my gaze back to the Presidium's lake as I thought about my next move.

_Aside from joining the crew, I still need to figure out how to use my omni-tool. I could find that data pad in Chakwas' desk if I got back on the Normandy...When I would get back on the Normandy. On top of that though, now I needed a translator. I wouldn't be able to converse with any of the kooky aliens I came across without it._

"-meet us at the Citadel Tower. Top level. I'll make sure you have clearance to get in."

"Wait," I said reflexively, already regretting opening my mouth.

"...Is this our witness for the trial?" Udina asked looking at Anderson.

"Yup," I replied. Shepard and her band of misfits eyed me. I ignored their stares.

"How will I know when it's my turn to give my testimony?"

Udina looked at me like I was stupid. "You'll be directly asked for your account by the councilors sometime during the trial."

I brought up my concerns. "Yeaaah, I won't know when I'm asked because I think my translator broke. All I heard were croaks and what sounded like a dog yodeling when you were talking to them just now."

"Great," Udina said pinching his nose.

"What do you use for a translator?"

Anderson's question took me off guard.

_Was it earpieces? Omni-tools? I remember reading in the codex something about skin implants too...I don't think I had those nor did I want one...which-_

"My omni-tool," I started. "I've actually been messing around with it since we left Eden Prime but I think a Geth overload caused it to go screwy."

_Another lie. I'll have to make sure not to mention that around Joker since I told him a different story._

"Here, let me take a look at it," said Kaidan, holding out his hand.

"...It looks like you have the situation under control. Don't be late. Anderson!"

The Ambassador and Anderson walked out of the room leaving us by ourselves.

"And that's why I hate politicians."

It took Kaidan a couple seconds after pulling it up, but by clicking a few buttons and waving his omni-tool over mine, BOOM, he had fixed it. Something chirped in my ear several times.

"That should do it. It looks like a part of your fabricator and the auditory synchronization tool were missing, so I just fabricated them with my own omni-tool. It should work just fine now."

"Uh thanks man," I sighed, shutting off my omni-tool. "If you hadn't noticed, tech isn't exactly my strong suit."

"So, what now Commander?"

Shepard looked at Alenko.

"I'd rather just head to the Citadel Tower and get this over with."

We left the room, with me leading the way of course. It was more Shepard's decision than mine. Kaidan decided to break the ice.

"So Ashley, Shepard, how was your debriefing?"

"Boring," Shepard muttered. Kaidan looked at Williams.

"The debrief wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. To be honest, the shrink actually kind of helped. Asked me a couple questions, how I was feeling and all that garbage, and then let me on my way," she replied. Alarms went off in my head.

_Ashley? Debrief about Prime? Shrink? Why am I getting a red flag. The whole thing sounds familiar...like I've seen it somewhere before..._

I whipped around to face her, "Williams, what was the name of your shrink?"

She raised an eyebrow at me. "Why does it matter?"

Everyone had stopped their descent down the stairwell.

I asked her again, "Was her name Captain Tatum?"

The Chief just continued to stare at me. "How do you know the shrink was a she?"

Shepard stared at Alenko. "He was in our sight the entire time. He never left our side," he assured her.

I ignored them and repeated my question to Williams. "Was her name Captain Tatum?"

Ashley was about to say something along the lines of "Kiss my ass" before Shepard interrupted us.

"Answer his question," Shepard said.

_What the-did she just she help me?!_

Williams had a look of bewilderment for the same reason. Then she reluctantly said "No...I think her name was Captain Channing."

_Ohhhhh. It was Channing...not Tatum. _

I thankfully didn't smile with my mix-up.

"Dammit," I just managed to mouth turning around.

I could feel Shepard's eyes burning into the back of my skull. "Spit it out. Why were you asking about her shrink and what does it matter?"

_It really hadn't mattered but...think fast, think fast, think-Bingo._

"Did your shrink have reddish-orange hair, dark skin?"

"...Yeah...how'd yo-"

"Then it's the same person. Captain Channing and Tatum are just some of her covers."

_And so were Rasa, Hope Lilium, and Maya Brooks._

"You're telling me someone impersonated her shrink," Shepard said incredulously.

"Yes. Williams, what did you tell her?"

She glanced at Shepard and Kaidan before answering. "...I just told her about what happened to me on Prime. The Geth. Being one of the only ones to make it out alive...I...I might have mentioned the beacon..."

Shepard's face contorted in anger. "You What?"

Williams went on the defensive.

"I wasn't sure if it was classified information or not. It was destroyed and I thought she was with the Alliance!"

"It doesn't matter," I interjected, hoping to nip this fight in the bud. "She's long gone by now and like you said, the beacon's destroyed. It doesn't help them to know about it."

Shepard rolled her eyes. "Them? Is this going to be another 'Shadow Broker'?"

"Not even close."

_Actually though..._

I decided to correct myself. "Scratch that. The man she works for is pretty much par for the course on knowing what's what."

"And the man she works for is...?"

I crossed my arms and just stared back at Shepard.

_Alright so what do I want to tell her? How much do I need to? What if it affected the events of ME2?...Ah Fuck It._

"He's only known as 'The Illusive Man' as he's so...elusive. Much fewer people know about him than the Shadow Broker. He's equally as mysterious though; no one knows who he is or where he came from. We only know that he heads a group known as Cerberus. I couldn't really tell you much more than that," I lied.

"So...what? Should we go looking for her?" Kaidan asked.

"Like he said, she's already long gone. There's not much else we can do." Shepard turned back around, facing down the stairs. "And now Great. After that waste of time, now we're probably late. Come on."

We walked down the rest of the steps back into the main lobby.

The receptionist told us, "Have a nice day!" but we were apparently ignoring her as we marched out of the embassy. We kept walking until Shepard spotted the nearest 'rapid transit station'. As Shepard approached the sky car, AVINA materialized out of some sort of holo-emitter next to her feet.

"Hello I-"

"I'm not interested."

"Our records indicate this is your first time on the Citadel. A brief orientation session is customary. Please allow me to do my job."

_This is Shepard's FIRST time here?_

"I'll pass."

The poor VI looked dejected at Shepard's answer as she recited the rest of her spiel and powered down. I had never known that this was Shepard's first visit to the Citadel. If she was impressed or enamored by the views at all, she didn't show it.

Alenko decided to ask again. "So Commander, are you sure you want to head straight to the tower?"

"Yeah. It's not like there's anything else to do around here."

_What. This is the fucking CITADEL. What do you mean there's 'nothing to do'?!_

I restrained myself from acting out.

_God, Shepard is the worst._

We all hopped into the skycar, with Shepard claiming the passenger seat. That left the rest of us to squeeze into the back. I was wedged in the middle.

_They obviously don't trust me enough to give me a window seat yet. Hopefully we can change that with time._

It took about seven minutes, give or take, for our ride to reach the top of the tower. It landed on a small pad that had a door leading to elevators inside the Citadel Tower. Shepard made sure to shove me forward as I got out of the car.

"I'm watching you," she whispered. "Just try something. Make my day."

_Oh my god...that was the cheesiest thing I have ever heard in my entire life. __Shepard's definitely the worst._

We took the elevator several floors up before we reached as high as it would take us. Then we took the several flights of stairs that led the rest of the way to the Council. We eventually reached the tippy top after a LOT of climbing, and entered the room where decisions concerning the galaxy were made.

In the clearing ahead of us, two Turians were in a heated discussion.

One had a light blue tattoo relatively similar to Nihlus' covering his face. He was wearing the weird Turian tunic that's neckline was like...ten times the diameter of their actual neck. It reminded me of the fashion the citizens from the Capitol of the Hunger Games wore. Absurdity aside, it had an interesting pattern on it at least. Across from Executor Pallin though stood a clearly younger Turian, who opposed to Pallin's face paint, had just a single blue horizontal line tattooed under his eyes. He was wearing C-Sec's notorious blue and black color scheme, and although the armor's neck line was similar to the executor's, it seemed much less ridiculous.

_Ooooooh shit!_

As we came closer, I could hear Vakarian protesting the dismissal of his case.

"Stall them!"

"Stall the Council?" Pallin scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous! Your investigation is over, Garrus."

As the Executor left, Garrus turned to face our motley group, his signature visor coming into view. It actually looked kind of cheap. Like someone took a cleaver to the middle of someone's sun glasses and painted the lens blue.

_...I should totally get one._

A helmet was still high on my list of things to grab. Apparently that's where marines got their HUD as well as the protection for their noggins. Or at least that's what the site I kept accessing on the extranet said, back when I was still trying to pull up the time on the Normandy. A Heads Up Display apparently kept track of your radar, your ammo supply, your shields, and how close your gun was to overheating.

_A HUD would be hella nice. I would like to see the ammo I have left rather than keep track of every time I shoot... _

The helmets I saw the three of these guys wearing back on Prime were pretty clunky though. Not exactly something I would care to wear everywhere. The visor was a lot more convenient to have on you and it'd probably go for less since it wasn't a chunk of armor.

"Well good luck Shepard, maybe they'll listen to you."

_Ah shit, I zoned. Focus man. You CAN NOT day dream during the trial. Shit's too important._

After he passed us, I hopped ahead before Shepard could shove me forward again. As we walked around a large fountain, I had to admit, the center of galactic civilization was pretty swanky.

_Which it should be since these guys have been living in the place for like, the last 1000 years._

Trees resembling sea ferns were spread throughout the main floor of the tower, with small little patches of greenery and boulders present too.

_Nice little rock gardens for that Zen atmosphere._

We quickly found ourselves having to maneuver around the topiary, which was hard enough without having to dodge all the alien dignitaries and politicos in our way too. Shepard finally let me fall behind her as we approached the set of stairs leading to the Council Chamber. Kaidan decided to break the silence.

"This is it. The very heart of the Citadel. The pinnacle of galactic power. Kind of makes your head spin if you think about it too much."

I was inclined to agree with him. After no one humored him, he decided to continue.

"And you sure have to climb a lot of stairs to reach the Council. Think that's supposed to be symbolic of their importance?"

Ashley apparently disagreed.

"I bet all these staircases aren't just for show. They make for good defensive positions if this place is ever attacked."

_Oh my god that foreshadowing._

I have to admit, every time I revisit this game, there was always something new that I had missed.

_Dude, come on, Fo-_

"-cus," Shepard told them. "We're almost there."

We climbed a second set of stairs where Anderson was already waiting for us.

"The hearing's already started. Come on."

Shepard just glared back at me like being late was my fault before following Anderson in.

_Oh right, I guess it kinda was._

As we approached the chamber, neither the large rift in the floor nor the Council in front of us was what drew my attention. Not even Udina who was furiously debating our position. It was the hologram that was a couple stories tall projecting to the left of it all.

The description I had given the Normandy crew of Saren did him no justice. The dude just looked pure fucking evil. The cybernetic arm on his-

_Ha, it was his left!_

-shoulder looked like he had ripped a Geth in half and stuck it on his torso. The intricate tubes and hoses poking out of it wired all across his body. I could tell that they also went into the back of his skull. It made him look that much more like the synthetics that followed him. And with it already being silver, his face rife with cybernetic implants made it look that much more robotic. He resembled the Terminator after it had its face blown off and if it was Turian. Metal bars were seemingly fused with his mandibles; parts of his fringe had slivers of metal sunken into them; And his eyes...

Though it was a hologram, I could still tell they were soulless. Husk-like. Tiny little slits that peered at you. Within them were so many divots and dark lines that not one hint was left that they might have once been organic. My attention was only drawn away from the projection as the Asari councilor mentioned his name.

"-ndicate Saren was involved in any way." She seemed very calm.

"The investigation by Citadel Security turned up no evidence to support your charge of treason either," the Turian added as if his neighbor had not just said that.

_And I never quite got that. They closed Vakarian's case before we had even arrived at the Citadel. I mean, it took us like less than a day to get here from Eden Prime. And what, was he the only agent assigned to the case too? They obviously had filed it as a joke._

"Two eyewitnesses saw him kill Nihlus in COLD BLOOD!" Udina shouted, apparently trying win our case through sheer volume.

"We read the Eden Prime reports Ambassador," the Salarian councilor coldly replied. "The testimony of two traumatized dockworkers are hardly compelling proof."

He did have a point there.

_Although when the hell had I become a dockworker?_

Udina turned to give me the stink eye.

_Ooh my testimony._

I pointed an accusing finger at Saren. "He's the one who killed Nihlus! Nihlus let his guard down once he saw him and then Saren put a bullet through the back of his head!"

They didn't seem impressed. I felt a shiver creep up my spine as Saren stared at me and addressed the room.

"I resent these accusations. Nihlus was a fellow Spectre. And a friend."

His voice echoed across the chamber. The venom dripping from his mouth was laced with menace.

_He sounds AND looks like a psychopath. I mean for Christ sake, he's doesn't even have face tattoos which for Turians was the equivalent of an all around scumbag. How could they even think this dude was innocent of anything..._

"That just let you catch him off guard!" Anderson countered.

"Captain Anderson." Saren let the word hang in the air as if it were an insult. "You always seem to be involved when Humanity makes false charges against me." He now turned his attention toward Shepard. "And you must be his protégé, the one who let the beacon get destroyed."

I hadn't paid attention to her with all the accusations being thrown around but she currently seemed to be frothing at the mouth.

"The mission to Eden Prime was top secret! The only way you could've known about the beacon is if you had been there!"

_Okay Shepard. Then Saren goes-_

"With Nihlus gone, his files passed to me. I read the Eden Prime report. I was unimpressed."

_It's about time for my witty comeback._

"Funny, I was about to say the same about your ship."

Saren gave me a look, but I couldn't place its intent, his face was unreadable with those dead, robotic eyes.

"Pardon?"

"The dreadnought that we all saw on Eden Prime."

Even though the looks I got from the Humans almost discouraged me, I carried on.

"If you looked at the reports, you would've seen the video that I assume was included with it," I said to the Council. "It looked nothing like the Geth designs we came across there. It's design was totally alien. We should be asking right now where that dreadnought came from!"

They just stared at me.

"We are here for Saren's trial, not for speculating the Geth's technological advancements," the Turian councilor pointed out.

_Oops, that was true. Lost my train of thought there._

"Typical, shifting the topic to something else once they realized their accusations held no ground. But what could you expect...from Humans."

The sinister-ness of Saren's voice caught me off guard, derailing my next train of thought. I forgot what I had planned to say next. Shepard was boiling with anger at this point, whether about my off topic point or Saren's remark, I couldn't say. Probably both.

"You can be expect me to kill you the next time we meet," she threatened. Her voice was trembling with rage.

Saren brushed aside her blatant threat. "Your species needs to learn its place, Shepard. You're not ready to join the Council. You're not even ready to join the Spectres!"

That remark now got Udina going. "He has noooOoO RIGHT TO SAY THAT! THAT'S NOT HIS DECISION!"

The Asari councilor gave us this concession. "Shepard's admission into the Spectres is not the purpose of this meeting," she told Saren.

"This meeting has no purpose," Saren retorted. "The Humans are wasting your time, councilor. And mine."

"You can't hide behind the Council forever!" Shepard shouted at him.

"And there is still one outstanding issue," Anderson added.

_Oh dear, here it comes._

"The vision that Commander Shepard and Shield received. They may have been triggered by the beacon."

"Are we allowing dreams into evidence now? How can I defend my innocence against this kind of testimony?" Saren almost seemed to say this laughing...if Turians could.

_Although the comment was true. Oh so true. _

I still hadn't understood why Anderson brought it up. It almost derailed our argument as much as my unintentional tangent did.

"I agree. Our judgment must be based on facts and evidence, not wild imaginings and baseless speculation." Even though it made sense, the Turian councilor still just came across as a dick.

"Do you have anything else to add Commander Shepard?" the Salarian councilor asked.

Shepard just gave them her signature glare.

"You made your decision, I won't waste my breath."

The Council ruled their verdict.

The gang was less than pleased.

Saren gloated over us with their ruling. "I'm glad to see justice was served."

His hologram flickered out.

"This meeting is adjourned."

We turned back toward the stairs, defeated, and walked back the way we came. I noticed Udina taking a moment, staring blankly into space where he stood, before snapping out of his trance and following us down. Once he reached the bottom, he lambasted Anderson and I.

"It was a mistake bringing you...and him-" He motioned rudely to me. "-into that hearing, Captain. You and Saren have too much history. That made the council question our motives. His tangent about that Geth ship didn't help either."

I regretted mentioning it too.

Anderson turned to face us. "I know Saren. He's working with the Geth for one reason: to exterminate the entire human race!"

He was technically correct. Although he wouldn't just stop there.

"Every colony we have is at risk. Every world we control is in danger. Even Earth isn't safe."

I remembered why I had brought the 'Geth ship' up. To bring attention to the true threat. To Sovereign. If I could reveal it was a Reaper early, convince everyone they were coming, maybe we could better prepare for their arrival. That all relied on them focusing on it instead of Saren though. I ended up just adding, "With that dreadnought the Geth had on Eden Prime, no conventional weaponry could stop them!"

_Nice._

"Tell me about this history between you and Saren," Shepard questioned disregarding my statement.

That surprised me as I didn't think she would have cared enough to ask.

"I worked with him on a mission a long time ago. Things went bad. Real bad."

_You can read all about it in my latest novel penned by Drew Karpyshyn. Available on the nearest terminal near you!_

I chuckled to myself. Technically the book was like half a decade old now with a handful of sequels.

"We shouldn't talk about this here. But I know what he's like. And he has to be stopped."

Shepard was as adamant as ever that we still didn't need the Council. "We need to deal with Saren ourselves."

_Sigh._

Although her intent on destroying Saren made me realize something.

_I should stick to the game's script. Don't deviate. If I try to push things on them, it'd probably backfire and result in a scenario like the one that happened earlier. Knowledge of the future doesn't really help either if I end up changing it. Focus on busting Saren now and I can see what I can do later._

Then I also realized that at the end of this conversation, I was outtie unless I thought of something.

"As a Spectre, he's virtually untouchable. We need to find some way to expose him."

"What about Garrus, the C-Sec investigator?" Kaidan brainstormed. "We saw him arguing with the executor."

"That's right!" Ashley chimed in.

I tuned her out as I tried to fumble for a plan. Anderson will mention they can find him through Harkin, but he won't like it. So he'll suggest-

_Aha!_

I came up with my plan right as Shepard finished her racist little comment.

"He's a Turian. I don't want him on our side."

_What the fuck._

I hadn't noticed that Shepard was as racist as shit.

_Was it racist though? Or speciest? _

Udina being the voice of reason baffled me even more.

"Not all Turians are like Saren. If he can help, we need to find him."

_We better. We were most definitely not defeating Saren and the Geth without the Archangel of Omega_.

"I have a contact in C-Sec who can help us track Garrus down. His name is Harkin."

_Oh shit, this is it._

Anderson voiced his opinions for why they shouldn't waste their time on him. Udina rebutted him.

"You won't have to. I don't want the Council using your past history with Saren as an excuse to ignore anything we turn up. Shepard will handle this."

_Oh wait. Guess it comes later._

I could hear Shepard gritting her teeth at how Udina was addressing Anderson.

"You can't just cut Captain Anderson out of this investigation."

"The ambassador's right. I need to step aside."

Shepard's jaw seemed to drop when he agreed with Udina. The Ambassador then concluded his business here.

"I need to take care of some business. Captain, meet me in my office later."

Our group waited for Udina to walk out of earshot before we continued.

"Harkin's probably getting drunk at Chora's Den. It's a dingy little club in the lower part of the Wards," Anderson told us.

"I thought he was a drunken loser," Shepard replied.

"Couldn't hurt to go talk to him. Just be careful. I wouldn't call him reliable."

"Are you sure there's no other sources we can go to for evidence?"

_Alright, here's my chance._

"Actuallllly," I interjected before Anderson could speak.

Then Shepard cut me off while staring knives at me. "Why are you still here. The trial's over."

The comment kind of hurt. I composed myself before responding.

"Like I said earlier, that bastard Saren can't get away with what he's done. I want to help you take him down." I crossed my arms and leaned against a beam behind me. "And I know someone who might just be able to help."

"I doubt it," Shepard muttered. I just frowned at her.

"Barla Von. He knows everything that goes on in the Presidium, if not the entire Citadel."

Anderson supported my claim. "I had heard a rumor he worked for the Shadow Broker. Apparently he's one of his top representatives."

"One of his most _public_ representatives," I corrected. Anderson went on.

"He might know something about Saren. But his information won't come cheap."

_And that's where I come in._

"As a fellow agent, I might be able to get a deal on what he's offering," I said smugly. "I'll go to him and see what he might have for us."

_They didn't need to know that the information they were looking for was already free._

"Alenko, I want you to go with him. Make sure he doesn't try anything. If he is working with Saren..."

I stopped her before she could finish. "I'm not." I met her stare head on before continuing. "But if it makes you feel any better, I'd be glad to have the lieutenant tag along." I cursed in my head as I said it. If I actually claimed to work for the Broker in front of Barla, that was a sure fire way to expose my story for the weak lie that it was.

"Then I guess while they talk to him, we can go talk to Harkin at Chora's Den Commander," Ashley said.

Anderson seemed to approve of our plan.

"It sounds like you all have everything sorted out., I'll be heading to the Ambassador's office, you can find me there if you need me." He paused to look at Shepard before taking his leave.

"Good luck Commander."

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

**Big dump. Chapter 6 and hopefully the last edits for every chapter before it. Bonus points to whoever finds all the changes!**

**Next time: Barla Von's On, Harkin's harking up the wrong tree, and enter Team Normandy. **

**Catch you next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


	7. Pretending to be a Professional PI

Flying in the sky car the second time was a lot more traumatizing. Having a window seat this time did not comfort me either. I guessed that not many people visited the Citadel Tower as there were only a handful of cars that had headed towards the top with us back then. Apparently, traveling to the Presidium's Financial District was a different story.

Tens of hundreds of cars flit by us as we traveled something close to 70 mph. Traffic lanes seemed non-existent as vehicles jerked up at the last second to avoid head-on collisions. I was glad most were driven by on board VI as I couldn't imagine driving one manually. One little bump and BOOM, you exploded 200 feet above the air taking every vehicle in your radius with you. It was madness.

I dug my nails into the seat.

_I'm walking next time._

Kaidan and I were sitting in the back of the car. Both of us deciding to bear the ride in silence. I was grateful as it gave me time to make up a plan of attack. When Shepard had assigned him to watch me, it had really thrown a wrench in my plans.

_When we meet with Barla Von, Kaidan's going to expect the Volus to recognize me as another agent straight away. Or if not, that I straight up tell the Volus that I work for the Shadow Broker. And if I did that...I wasn't going to do that._

I hadn't even planned to meet the Volus. I already knew where to find Wrex and Garrus. But pretending to have resources and contacts made me valuable, someone they would want for help to take down Saren. Even if I wasn't the best shot in the world, if the talent window was for real, I could get close enough to it. With seemingly endless information on everything and decent enough abilities with a rifle, I'd become invaluable to the Normandy.

But of course with Kaidan tagging along, I would actually have to interact with Barla. I cursed my luck.

"Hey Kaidan-"

He turned his head away from his window.

_I decided honesty is the best policy in this scenario._

"I'm gonna be honest with ya. I don't know Barla personally. I only knew that he works for the Broker. But you know how I might have mentioned working for the Broker would probably get us a discount?"

"Yeah?" he replied concerned.

"Well one of his only rules for us is to not reveal that you work for him under any situation." I reflected on the statement. "Unless it's under extraordinary circumstances of course."

"Uh alright. So how do you plan to get the information on Saren?" He paused to think over what I had said. "And how do people know that Barla Von works for the Shadow Broker then?"

I addressed his questions in that order.

"Right now, I know for a fact that the Broker and Saren aren't on the best of terms. If we just ask about the Turian, he might give us a deal since the Broker has it out for him. And there's a difference between his information _brokers_ and _agents_."

He seemed sated. "Alright then. Well in that case, I'll follow your lead."

Our sky car finally slowed and descended to our transit stop. The first thing I noticed stepping out of it was that we were under a large patch of shade. Looking around, I found myself in the middle of a miniature forest, a large swath of trees adorning the sides of the Presidium's streets.

_Nifty._

I told Kaidan to take a right.

_If my memory serves correctly..._

I walked towards the first door we came across, and as it slid open, I saw the Volus talking into one of his many computers. He seemed fairly preoccupied with whomever he was conversing with though. Kaidan and I had to wait a while until he finally finished and turned his attention toward us.

"Ones of the Earth-clan? For what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Barla Von?" I asked already knowing the answer. "We're here on the behalf of Commander Shepard."

"Ah," he cut in before I could ask him what I wanted. "The famous Shepard. The one at Torfan, correct? She led the final assault against the enemy base, if memory serves."

_With Shepard's sunny disposition, I'm not surprised to hear that she was 'the Butcher'._

"Uh, yeah. That would be her."

"I noticed she had arrived. As a financial advisor to many important clients, I take notice when people of her stature come to the Citadel."

_Blah blah blah, I have information on your service record, I know everyone who comes and gos, I know where you sleep at night, blah blah blah._

"Alright," I replied curtly. It was annoying how hard he was trying to flaunt his information.

_Look at that, the pot's calling the tea kettle black._

_Shut up._

"We heard you work for the Shadow Broker, so I'm assuming you know some things. We're currently looking for some information on a Spectre called Saren."

"You are quite blunt Earth-clan. But you are right. I am an agent for the Shadow Broker. And I do happen to have information on Saren."

"Great, let's hear it."

"This information is usually worth a small fortune. But this is an unusual situation. So I'm going to let you have it for a small fee."

_FEE?! Dah Fuq!?_

"How much?" Kaidan asked for me.

"Only one small favor. But I'll give you what you want to hear first as a show of good faith."

_Well...I Guess that's manageable if it's just a short chore...but why wasn't it free?!_

"The Shadow Broker is quite upset with Saren right now. They used to do a lot of business. Until Saren turned on him."

I noticed Kaidan staring at me with concern after hearing that tidbit.

_Great. Just add that to the list of reasons why I'm not getting on the Normandy._

"I'm guessing he bribed one of your lackeys?"I asked trying to speed up the conversation to no avail.

"I don't know the details, but the Shadow Broker hired a freelancer to deal with it. A krogan mercenary."

"That's not much to go on," Kaidan replied.

_Dammit dude. Stop asking questions. I want to get out of here._

"I just told you the most famous Spectre in the galaxy betrayed the Shadow Broker. Quite a bargain, considering the price."

"Alright, alright. Where can we find this mercenary?" I asked annoyed.

"Not so fast Earth-clan. If you want the rest, I'll need that payment."

_Daaaaaammit._

"So...what do you want?"

"There's a man that goes by the name of Fist. He owns the night club called Chora's Den in the Wards."

I wondered what the hell he could want from his coworker.

_We're headed in that direction any way dude so ask away._

"He has some information I would like to procure. He should keep everything I want on an OSD. He most likely keeps it in his office at the back of his club. If you were to acquire this device for me, I would consider that a sufficient trade for my information."

"Done," I replied although Alenko looked like he might have objections.

"Good...I heard the Krogan mercenary was paying a visit to Citadel Security. If you hurry you might catch him before he leaves the Academy."

"Why w-" Kaidan started before I cut him off.

"Alright thanks Barla, we'll head there right away. Appreciate the help. We'll be sure to keep in touch!"

I urged Kaidan out of the store, waving to the short round Volus behind us.

"My pleasure,*ksshh*, Earth-clan."

Once we were outside, Kaidan wheeled to face me.

"Why did he just give us the rest of the information we wanted? We didn't even do what he had asked yet."

I decided just to feed him the first lie I thought of. "He knows that if you ever want to do business with him again, we would get him that OSD."

_Although I'm pretty sure that might've been the actual reason._

I wondered to myself though why he had even asked us for a favor in the first place.

_Was it because we had gone to see him instead of Shepard? What could be on the disc that Fist hadn't already told the Shadow Broker? Why were we deviating so far from the game's script already?!_

"And did he say back there that Saren and the Broker used to work together!?"

_...Well...I guess I can worry about all that later. _

I took some time before answering his question.

"The Shadow Broker is a neutral party. He's a universal resource that everyone has at their disposal. He doesn't play politics, and he doesn't 'work' with anybody." Making quotations in the air with the word didn't seem to convince him. I decided to keep laying it on. "Look I had no idea they had done business. Obviously it was a bad decision too as we've all seen how insane he is. And past aside, the Broker just helped us with our case against him."

That seemed to placate the Lieutenant for now.

"Alright...do you want to radio the Commander or should I?"

"I'll do it," I said. Then I also begged "But please...can you not mention that to her? If she heard that the Broker and Saren might have worked together once...she'd never trust me again."

He looked away before addressing me. "...No...I understand, it'll stay between you and me."

I smiled at him and said "Thank you." I tapped the earpiece that I had become aware of when Kaidan fixed my translator and tuned it to the frequency Shepard had given me with my omni-tool.

"Shepard?"

"...what is it?" she replied curtly.

"We got a lead from Barla. Apparently Saren pissed off the Broker and he recently hired a Krogan mercenary to deal with the problem he created. He's currently at C-Sec."

"...That's just where we we're headed. We'll meet you there."

_What._

"Really?" I asked concerned.

_Did Harkin not pull through?...Oh god...did she kill him before he could spill the beans?_

"The drunk at Chora's said the Turian might be at C-Sec or a Doctor's office in the Wards. I'm opting for the former."

_Oh alright, time to continue playing detective then._

"You know what, while you go to C-Sec looking for Garrus and the Krogan, we'll check that Doctor out for you. Even if Garrus isn't there, we could still stock up on medical supplies."

"...Fine. I'll send you the coordinates. We'll radio you if we actually find anything."

"Same."

"...Also, we were attacked by some Turians that were working for Saren. Keep an eye out."

"Got it Commander, thanks."

I turned to Kaidan.

"Welp."

* * *

><p><strong>A few moments earlier...<strong>

Shepard and Williams exited the sky car.

The Wards were very different from the Presidium. Dark alleys and dim lighting seemed to be around every turn. Shady dealers and merchants offered deals for equipment they shouldn't have. And the corridors were all closely packed, bustling with transients and aliens, making it difficult for her to make any head way toward where they needed to go.

The lack of progress they were making and the amount of aliens knocking into her caused her to quickly lose her patience.

"Williams, how far away are we from this club?" she growled.

"I just saw a sign for it when we got out Commander. It should actually be straight through this area and on our right."

"Thank god," she muttered. "I could use a drink."

She kept walking ahead as Williams looked at her in disbelief. They eventually came to an empty alley way that seemed to stretch on forever. Long shadows cast by dull crimson lights covered a large portion of it.

"Hey Commander...I'm getting a real bad feeling about this place."

Her intuition was unfounded as they exited the other side of the alley without encountering any trouble. Exiting it, they walked through a doorway to their right and entered an large open chamber (by the standards of the Wards at least). A chest high barrier separated them from a large rectangular pit in the center of the area. A large neon sign depicting an Asari flashed before them. She began to make her way towards the bar before she made eye contact with two Turians leaning against a wall across from them.

"That's her."

Her instincts kicked in as she immediately took cover. Williams wasn't as fast, her shield taking a couple hits before she followed suit.

"What the hell!?" she shouted over their volley.

Shepard wasted no time.

She popped back up while deploying a barrier to absorb the incoming fire, and emptied her Kessler into the Turian across from her. It lost its shields before it took cover. Then Williams stood up to return fire with it subdued. Shepard ran past her and took a left, taking several steps before another left around the corner to where the two aliens were taking cover.

They couldn't react fast enough as she shot a single bullet into the head of the Turian that had lost its shields, and then sent a mass effect field at the one behind it. Williams riddled it with bullets as it floated in the air helpless. Its body fell into the abyss in the center of the room shortly after her biotics dissipated.

"Those were Saren's men," Williams said.

Shepard grunted in affirmative as she holstered her weapon and approached the entrance of the bar.

No one in the club had seemed to notice the gun fight outside. But that was probably due to the deafening music and scantily clad women drawing the attention of them all.

"A million light years from where Humanity began and we walk into a bar filled with men drooling over half-naked women shaking their asses on a stage. I can't decide whether that's funny or sad."

"Maybe they're just here for the food."

Her quip had the Chief speechless. Shepard decided to walk towards the bar while scanning the room. She was looking for the description of the drunk that Anderson had given her. Unfortunately, she heard him before she saw him.

"Hey there, sweetheart. You looking for some fun? 'Cause I gotta say that soldier getup looks real good on that bod of yours."

He had more.

"Why don't you sit your sweet little ass down beside old Harkin? Have a drink and we'll see where this goes."

She turned to him flitting her lashes.

"I just might."

She took a seat. Williams stood behind here aghast.

"Harkin? I was told you could maybe help me find someone. A Turian C-Sec officer named Garrus."

"Garrus? Ha! Forget him sweet cheeks. You should stick around and have some fun with me instead."

"I just might," Shepard cooed. "But I should really tell my CO where he could find him first."

He looked her up and down.

"Alright...on one condition."

"Oh?" Shepard said with interest.

"You buy us a couple drinks. That way, we'll be nice and loose for later."

He grinned at her. She turned her head and motioned to a waitress. The erotic dancer nodded back and approached the bartender for them.

After this, Harkin talked. "Alright, looks like we're having fun now!...I know where Garrus might be. But in-...wait...If you're looking for Garrus, you must be with Anderson's crew. Poor bastard's still trying to bring down Saren eh?"

Shepard's eye twitched.

"Hey, before he told you to come, did the Captain let you in on his big secret?"

"What are you talking about?" Williams humored him.

A sly grin grew across Harkin's face. "The Captain used to be a Spectre. Didn't know that did you? It was all very hush-hush. The first human ever given that honor. And then he blew it."

Shepard's flirtatious smile disappeared as Harkin chuckled at what he had said like it had been a joke.

"Screwed up his mission so bad they kicked him out. 'Course he blames Saren. Said the Turian set him up."

"Your lying. How do you even know the Captain?" Williams snapped back.

"Met him a few times over the years. One of those hard core military guys. Yes sir! No sir! Can't have any fun with a stick up your ass sir!" he sneered. "Probably why he climbed the Alliance ranks so fast. The military loves brown nosers."

"Where can we find Garrus?" Shepard asked in a low tone.

"Last I heard he was sniffing around Dr. Michel's office. She runs a med clinic on the other side of the Wards. But he's probably back at C-Sec by now."

Then he bent over the table.

"Now I get to ask you somethin'," he said grinning. "How wide does that pretty little-"

Shepard ripped the table aside with her left hand, sending it flying into the bar at the middle of the room. As Harkin took a step back from where the table had just been, he found her right fist meet his face with a biotic field. There was a sickening crack as it connected with his jaw. Several molars were sent flying. She then bent over him and picked him up by the collar of his shirt. She then slammed him back on the ground. She took a knee on top of Harkin and whispered into his ear.

"You were right. We are having fun now."

Harkin was already unconscious when she lifted him up and flung him over her shoulder into the bar. His head hit the table that was lying across the counter.

She left him where he had landed and motioned to Williams. "Let's go."

"Damn Commander," she mouthed as they walked back towards the entrance. The patrons they passed averted their eyes or completely turned their heads in the opposite direction.

The Krogan bouncer had made a move to confront her but it decided to back down once she gave it a side wards glance.

As they walked out of the club, Shield radioed her.

"Shepard?"

* * *

><p><strong>Back in the Present...<strong>

We got out of our ride just outside Dr. Michel's office. I decided to give Kaidan a heads up for the scene we were about to walk into.

"Hey, be on your toes. The Turian mercenaries Shepard mentioned might be here too."

He thought I was joking. "I'll be sure to keep an eye out."

As he past me and the door slid open, he took a couple steps before freezing.

"I didn't tell anyone I Swear!"

"That was smart, Doc."

I saddled up next to the LT who had pressed himself against the wall.

"Now if Garrus comes around, you'll stay smart. Keep your mouth shut or we'll-"

Kaidan decided to play the hero and leaped from the shadows. I decided to follow him out against my better judgement. The thug spun to face us, tightening his arm around the Doctor's neck while shouting.

"WHO ARE YOU?!"

"Your worst nightmare," I said gruffly, fingering the gun at my hip.

Kaidan gave me a look.

The thug didn't have time to register the threat though as Garrus turned the corner and popped the guy right in the head. The others were too overwhelmed with how the odds had just turned against them. They practically froze in place as three heavily armed gunslingers apparated right before them. After it was all said and done, the C-Sec agent turned to us.

"Perfect timing. You two gave me a clear shot at that bastard."

"Nice shot," I commented. "But weren't you afraid that you might've hit the Doctor?"

"Yeah, you could've killed her!" Kaidan said angrily.

"There wasn't time to think. I just reacted. I didn't mean to-Dr. Michel, are you hurt?"

I looked at her as she got up from where she had been huddling. She slowly spoke.

"No. I'm okay. Thankz to vou...Thankz to all of vou."

She was actually really cute. Red hair, fair skin, heart faced shape...and her French accent definitely didn't hurt. She actually kind of resembled the Commander. The only real difference between them were their eyes.

_The Doctor's were soft, gentle...caring...nothing like Shepard's._

Kaidan was the first to begin our game of twenty questions.

"Who were they? Why were they threatening you? Who did they work for?"

The Doctor took a breath before answering.

"They said they worked for Fist. They wanted to shut me up, keep me from telling Garrus about the Quarian."

"What Quarian?" Kaidan asked.

"A few days ago-"

I looked at Vakarian. He still looked like he was coming down from the fire fight. His eyes seemed restless and the Turian still gripped his gun tightly. I snapped back to attention when I heard Shepard's voice.

"Shield, what's your current situation?"

I walked back towards the entrance so I didn't interrupt the Doctor's exposition.

"We just found Garrus at Dr. Michel's. Some of Fist's thugs were threatening her. I believe the guy is working for Saren."

I turned around when I heard something related to my imaginary boss.

"-an agent for the Shadow Broker."

I saw that Kaidan was peering at me again.

_Why was the Shadow Broker such a shady guy? He's making this really hard for me._

Shepard responded. "Good to hear you found the Turian. We met the Krogan mercenary. He told us the same thing. We're nearing Fist's now. Head over here as soon as you can."

"Will do," I replied.

I walked back to the Doctor who was still talking.

"Saren must've made him quite the offer..."

"That Quarian must have something Saren wants. Something worth crossing the Shadow Broker to get."

"Well then. I guess we should go find her," I suggested.

Garrus just continued with his epiphany.

"She must have something linking Saren to the Geth. There's no way the Council can ignore this!"

"Well...let's go find her then," I repeated.

"She must be at Fist's right now. How can we get to her?" Kaidan said.

He had apparently turned his earpiece off. I decided to mention that Shepard had already left to assault his hideout.

"What?! We have to get there!"

The young C-Sec agent stopped Kaidan before he turned to leave. "This is your and Shepard's show. But I want to bring Saren down as much as you do. I'm coming with you!"

"The more the merrier," I replied. Kaidan seemed to want to say something but decided to keep it to himself.

As we continued to make our way for the door, Garrus seemed to have an afterthought and stopped. He turned to address the Doctor. "Those thugs also mentioned something about you giving your supplies to someone Doctor. Or they would reveal your secret. What were they talking about?"

She looked uncomfortable when he asked the question. So did I.

_What? That whole thing didn't start until like, the second Citadel visit. And with a Krogan. Not Fist's thugs..._

"I...a long time ago, I had been caught giving out medical supplies to small clinics much like this one. When my employers found out, they fired me. Never filed any charges. They just wanted me to leave without any fuss."

I still didn't really follow the logic.

"That's pretty admirable doctor," I told her. "Wanting to help the less fortunate? Not exactly something you should be ashamed of."

"Thank you," she said. "But if word ever got out that I gave away medical supplies, I could lose my license, I could lose my clinic!" She said distraught.

_Oh right._

"If I didn't give their contact what they wanted, they said they'd expose my secret..."

She seemed to be on the verge of tears.

"So they were extorting you too. Doctor, after we're finished with Fist, I'll take care of it for you," Garrus said with vindication.

She looked up smiling at him. "Thank you," she choked, wiping a tear from her eye. "This is the store clerk they wanted me to go to." She handed him a slip.

"I know him. I'll check it out."

"And we'd be glad to lend a hand too, wouldn't we Kaidan!"

He didn't seem to share my enthusiasm. "We should really get going to help the Commander."

"Right," Garrus replied.

"Good luck," Dr. Michel told us as we left her clinic.

_And the three silent heroes set off for Fist's club._

Kaidan turned to me as we walked through the district.

"...your worst nightmare?"

* * *

><p>"Williams!"<p>

"I see him Commander!"

She sniped the thug that had been taking cover on top of the bar.

The Krogan mercenary was wrestling with one of Fist's own. A headbutt followed by a biotic field told her the two were on completely different levels. A shotgun to the face of Fist's Krogan confirmed it.

As the last two guards were blown away by the grenade they had ignored, Shepard lowered her weapon.

"Fist had a good thing going here...too bad he got greedy," the Krogan seemed to say to no one in particular.

She ignored him and continued to Fist's back room. Sliding open the door, she found two more guards aiming their weapons at her.

"Stop right there! Don't come any closer!"

"Warehouse workers. All the real guards must be dead," the Krogan surmised.

"Stay back or we'll shoot."

Shepard stared them down.

"I just killed fifty bodyguards to get here...What do you think I'll do to you."

"Uh..well...uh.."

"Aw, screw Fist. He doesn't pay us enough for this."

They dropped their weapons and Shepard let them pass by.

"Hm. Never would've thought that would work," Williams remarked.

"It would've been quicker just to kill them," the Krogan humphed.

As they walked into his office, she saw Fist dive toward his desk. "Why do I have to do everything myself!" he shouted from behind it. The turrets he activated though were no match for the two Alliance marines and Krogan. With their destruction, they now approached the desk Fist was cowering behind. "Wait! Don't kill me! I surrender!"

_Pathetic._

"Tell me where the Quarian is and I won't have to shoot you in the kneecaps," she threatened.

"She's not here!" he whimpered. "I don't know where she is. That's the truth!"

She frowned. "Wrong answer."

She lowered her gun and shot him in the foot.

"AGH. OKAY. OKAY. I'll talk. Unnh...I don't know where the Quarian is but I know where you can-AH." He gripped his boot in pain. "...She said she'd only deal with the Shadow Broker himself."

"Impossible. Even_ I_ was hired by a third party," the Krogan scoffed.

"That's what I said. But she wouldn't have it. So I lied to her. Told her I'd set a meeting up...But when she shows up, it'll be Saren's men waiting for her."

Shepard only hated one thing more than Batarians. And that was those who went back on their word. Traitors_._

"Tell me where that meeting is before I blow your head off," she growled.

He practically pissed himself. "Here in the Wards. The back alley by the markets. She's supposed to meet them right now. You can make it if you hurry."

"Shepard-" the Krogan started but she held a hand up.

"Too many people died her, Fist. You don't get to walk away."

Then she nodded to the Krogan. He smiled.

"NO, Wa-"

An data chip was knocked off his table after Wrex had taken care of him. She picked the OSD up as the Krogan slumped the body over his shoulder.

_Fist had worked for the Shadow Broker and then Saren. This disc might have information on one or both of them. And if it did...it might even have information concerning Shield connecting him with both._

"That Quarian's dead if we don't go now!" Williams sputtered.

_She was right._

"Alenko!"

No reply.

She tried radioing again.

"Shield!"

"...*krsh* little busy here Shepard!"

She could hear the sounds of bullets flying in the background.

"...but we got the Quarian. Some back-up wou-"

His radio cut out.

* * *

><p><strong>Moments Earlier...<strong>

"Hey guys did you hear that?" I lied to them.

"...Hm? I didn't hear anything," Kaidan replied.

We were next to the alley way adjacent to the room leading to Chora's Den.

"There!" I lied again and rushed towards the alley door, hoping they would follow me.

_If they don't, the mercenaries meeting Tali would totally kill me._

"Shield where are you going!"

I knew Fist was already getting taken care of, and I didn't want to risk anything by going there only to have to double back and find ourselves too late. As the door slid open, I saw what I wanted. There was little Vas Normandy meeting Saren's goon squad at the bottom of the stairwell.

"Did you bring it?" the Turian asked, stroking her helmet.

"Where's the Shadow Broker? Where's Fist?"

Luckily, my two compatriots had decided to follow me and saw what was going down.

"They'll be here. Where's the evidence?"

Now he was bringing his arm down along her waist.

It was kind of creepy to watch.

"No way, deal's off."

He looked back at his Salarian entourage and then back to her.

"What?"

"YO, She said the deal's OFF!" I shouted.

The Turian and his Salarians looked toward us in bewilderment, subsequently getting blinded by Tail's flashbang. I did my regular routine of rolling to cover. Bullets had already started whizzing by. Kaidan put up a barrier and was returning fire at them in the middle of the stair well. Our Turian was hidden behind a pillar, leaning out of it to fire at Saren's men.

"Alenko!"

_What the..._

It was a woman's voice.

"Shield!"

I realized it was my radio. Then an energy blast from someone's gun hit my cover.

_JESUS!_

"I'm a little BUSY here Shepard!"

But I decided to fill her in.

"We got the Quarian but some back-up would be really nice right about now!"

Or that's what I would've said if another carnage blast hadn't hit my cover. The impact of the shot had actually knocked me away from where I was crouching. It wasn't of my own volition but I subsequently popped up from where I was knocked over. Quickly resting my Predator on top of the crate I had been hiding behind, I lined a shot up at the Turian. He too happened to be lining a shot up. At my head.

He crumpled to the ground first.

"Nice shot!"

"...Thanks," I replied to Garrus. I stayed where I was kneeling. My head was reeling.

_I just blew that Turian's head off...that thing popped like a balloon...Did I really do that?...because that was freaking AWESOME! _

I bent over and vomited over my feet. It was the color of the small meal I had eaten back on the Normandy. Reddish brown.

"Uh, you okay there Shield?" Kaidan asked as he looked over. Thankfully Garrus hadn't seen it as he was already approaching Tali.

"Yup," I said grimacing. He didn't seem to believe me. I wouldn't either though with how my hands were trembling. I looked back at the ground.

_Grody._

I was still coming to terms with taking my first life when I heard Tail fuming.

"Fist set me up! I knew I couldn't trust him!"

I spat once more before approaching the trio at the bottom. I could hear Shepard and Co. just arriving on the scene after me.

_Ah the gang's all here._

Turning back to address them, Shepard flew down the stairs quicker than I could blink.

"You've got proof Saren is working with the Geth. Hand it over."

Shepard had no bed side manners.

"Woah Commander. First, you're welcome that we kept her safe for you. Second,-" I turned to our Quarian. "-are you okay Tali?"

I felt the Commander glaring at me before Tali piped up.

"How do you know my name?"

_Oh dammit._

I scrambled for an answer.

_Kaidan was with me the entire time so I couldn't lie and say Barla or the Doctor told me...shit._

"...You're technically royalty where you come from," I decided to answer. "I tend to be well-informed about important people."

"She's a princess?" Williams asked incredulously.

"Well I guess I can cross rescuing one off my list of things to do," Kaidan remarked.

"What? No I'm-," Tali started before Shepard told us to quiet and asked for her evidence again.

Tali, I assumed, stared back at her indignantly. She dropped the subject. "I'm grateful for your help but not so fast. Who are you?"

"Friends," I told her.

"We don't have time for questions," Shepard told her. "I need this evidence you have against Saren."

"I guess I owe you. But not out here in the open. We need to go somewhere safe."

"The Ambassador's office," Kaidan spoke up. "It's safe there. He'll want to see this anyway."

Ashley scrunched her face. "What smells?"

Shepard barked at us all to get a move on for the Embassies. And that's when I noticed our Krogan for the first time. I quickly averted my eyes from the eight foot tall monster carrying a corpse on his shoulder. The seven of us left the alley and called for two sky cars to take us to the Embassy Suites. Wrex decided he wanted to drop Fist's body off first though and called his own taxi.

* * *

><p>As we entered his office, Udina was less than pleased with us.<p>

"You're not making my life easy, Shepard. Firefights in the Wards? An all-out assault on Chora's Den? Do you know how many-" His eyes practically popped out of their sockets when he saw our motley crew. "Who is this? A Quarian? What are you up to Shepard?"

"This Quarian can help us bring down Saren. I would've told you that if you hadn't jumped down my throat."

I had to agree with her there. Apparently Udina did too.

"I apologize, Commander. This whole thing with Saren has me a bit on edge. Maybe we should just start at the beginning Miss-?"

"My name is Tali. Tali' Zorah nar Rayya."

_Aaand this is where we get our boring Quarian exposition. _

Our group was getting pretty large. I was more used to only having two companions at a time. Shepard was at the fore, left hand on her hip, probably glaring at Udina or at some pedestrian way off in the distance. Williams and Alenko were to my right, listening attentively to our guest. Garrus was behind me, probably twitching his mandibles or something as he sat through the lecture. Glancing over my shoulder at him, I realized he was a lot taller than I had thought. He had at least half a foot on me. The dude was like Shaq.

Looking to the far right of the room, I decided Tali was also a fairly interesting individual. The intricate patterns and different hues of violet on her exosuit really drew your eye. I would've just thought someone was wearing a fancy space burqa though if it wasn't for her three toes and fingers. The only thing that really bothered me about her right now was her distinct-

_Russian?_

-accent as she droned on and on. I actually almost dozed off a couple times. After the shenanigans in the Wards, I definitely deserved a chance to kick back. I realized we weren't quite done yet though as I heard Saren's voice suddenly boom across the room.

"Eden Prime was a major victory! The beacon has brought us one step closer to finding the Conduit."

"That's Saren's voice," Anderson said pointing out the obvious. "This proves he was involved with the attack!"

"Saren won't get out of this one," Shepard said gruffly.

_Shepard would ignore one of the most important plot points of the game. _

I was about to point out the Conduit before Tali spoke.

"Wait there's more. Saren wasn't working alone."

_Eden Prime, Victory, Beacon, Blah blah blah..._

"And one step closer to the return of the reapers."

Benezia's sultry voice was very distinct.

"I don't recognize that other voice. The one talking about Reapers."

I decided to spill some deets. It couldn't hurt. In fact, it'd just make me look better. "That sounded like Matriarch Benezia," I replied.

"Who?" Anderson asked.

"She's a very well known Asari...uh...I guess you could say spiritual guru? It doesn't make sense for her to be involved with Saren though."

Shepard was focused on what the voice had said rather than whom it belonged to.

"I feel like I've heard that name before."

"Benezia?" I asked knowing that was the wrong answer.

"No, the Reapers."

Tali piped up. "According to the memory core, the Reapers were a hyper-advanced machine race that existed 50,000 years ago. The Reapers hunted the Protheans to total extinction, and then they vanished. At least, that's what the Geth believe."

"Sounds a little far-Fetched," Udina scoffed.

_It really does looking at it objectively._

Shepard gasped.

"The vision on Eden Prime. I understand it now. I saw the Protheans being wiped out by the Reapers!"

"Oh Shit," I accidentally said aloud.

I had meant to say to say it sarcastically in my head.

Everyone turned to me.

_Whoops...let's see what I can cook up..._

"According to some archaeologists I talked with on Therum-" I lied.

_Hopefully the mention of the planet leads Shepard there first._

"-all the cultures existing around the time of the Protheans shared one particular story. A story of one specific boogeyman. The Reapers. If the beacon wasn't some kind of Prothean prank...then the Reapers...could be more than just myths."

I let the thought hang in the air.

_Nice save._

"The Geth revere the Reapers as gods, the pinnacle of non-organic life. And they believe Saren knows how to bring them back," Tali added.

"The Council is just going to love this."

"Might not be wise to mention the part about the 50,000 year old killer robots," I threw out there.

"No matter what they think about the rest of this, those audio files prove Saren's a traitor," Anderson stated.

"The Captain's right. We need to present this to the Council right away."

"What about her? The Quarian?" Williams said bluntly.

"My name is Tali," the 'Quarian' sassed back. "You can ask your squad how I did in the alley, Commander. They know what I can do. Let me come with you."

"I vouch for her abilities Shepard," I blurted.

She didn't turn to face me. I decided to continue arguing Nar Rayya's case.

"Even if she didn't know her way around a gun, she would obviously be helpful in getting us more intel from the Geth we run into."

_We luckily got Garrus and Wrex into the gang, I was going to be damned if we didn't recruit Tali too._

"...I'll leave it up to the Captain." She turned her gaze toward him.

"If what Shield said was true, we could definitely use someone of your expertise."

"Thanks. You won't regret this!" Tali chirped.

With Udina finishing his address to Shepard and leaving the room with Anderson, we were left among ourselves.

Shepard went to work.

"Turian, Williams, I want you both to catch up to Anderson and the Ambassador."

"Uh, you can just call me Garrus Commander," the 'Turian' replied.

The Chief voiced her concern. "Why?"

She had me asking the same thing.

"Because Saren already tried attacking us once in front of Chora's Den and then in the alleyway. With us getting the information we needed-"

"Say no more Commander."

They left to catch up with them.

"Tali, you'll obviously be a target too so I don't want you out of my sight."

"Of course," she replied.

"The rest of you, stop waiting around and get a move on. I want to get this over with."

_That makes two of us._

Shepard, Kaidan, Tali, and I wedged ourselves all back into a sky car again to get to the Tower.

The ride was long, silent and awkward.

* * *

><p>Once we arrived at the top of the Tower, Tali couldn't hide her excitement.<p>

"Wow...I'd never thought I'd get to see the Citadel Tower," she said in wonder.

"Yeah, it usually takes seven months to get a meeting here for us regular folk," I remarked.

"That's what the Citadel's VI told me."

We weaved our way through the same obstacles as before, eventually reaching the steps of the Council Chamber. Anderson was waiting at the top for us again with Vakarian and Williams.

"Come on. Udina's presenting the Quarian's evidence to the Council."

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

**Just for future reference, whenever you see line breaks in the story, think POV change or time lapse. Perhaps even both!**

**Also, shout out to that one dude who reads this from the Ukraine!**

**And lastly...just so I know I'm not insane...did any one else see an ad for a ball gag on the main page...**

**In the Next Chapter: Saren's not sane? Shepard's a Spectre!? We don't have to pay?! **

**Tune in next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


	8. Supra-Legal Soldier: Shepard the Spectre

"You wanted proof? There it is," Udina arrogantly remarked to the Council.

After hearing the evidence, the Council couldn't do anything except find Saren guilty of treason. I really wanted to them to find an apology for not believing us too but it wasn't to be. As they all drawled on, I began to nod off again. Until the Asari Councilor mentioned Benezia's name.

"Told ya," I quickly whispered to Shepard. She ignored me.

_And everything has gone swimmingly. I recruited Garrus without trouble, Shepard found Wrex, and we had rescued Tali before she had been killed by Saren's men. And with that we found the evidence we needed to nail Saren. Not bad for a day's work._

Shepard suddenly raised her voice, and I cringed thinking it was directed at me.

"I tried to warn you about Saren, and you refused to face the truth. Don't make the same mistake again!"

"This is different. You proved Saren betrayed the Council. We all agree he's using the Geth to search for the Conduit, but we don't really know why." The Asari Councilor always seemed to be the one to break it to us nice and gentle.

"The Reapers are obviously just a myth, Commander. A convenient lie to cover Saren's true purpose. A legend he is using to bend the Geth to his will."

_What an ass. Talking to us like we're idiots. He has no idea what was coming Palaven's way in just the next few years...everyone's way..._

I felt a fire well inside me. I felt my face flush with anger. Any desire I might have had to just sit back and keep my mouth shut while the trial ran its course washed away.

"That makes absolutely no sense," I said raising my voice. "You're telling me out of all the people that have gone into Geth space, Saren was the only one who wasn't killed on sight? Not only is he not killed but he convinces the Geth to _follow_ him instead? And he does all of this by claiming to be able to resurrect the gods they worship? Gods he should know nothing about?"

The flaw in their logic gave them a shorter pause than I had hoped.

"Saren could have found a tool to physically subvert the Geth to his cause as well. This Conduit could be related to whatever helped him achieve this. The claim of fifty thousand year old machines eradicating all organic life is simply preposterous."

_Ass...well, I tried. _

I opted to take Shepard's stance of glaring at the Turian Councilor after his response. She then took the wheel from there.

"Fifty thousand years ago, the Reapers DID wipe out all galactic civilization. If Saren finds the Conduit, it WILL happen again!"

I wished Shepard's persuasiveness was directly proportional with her rage. Because the Council just ended up writing her off again.

"Saren is a rogue agent on the run for his life. He no longer has the rights or resources of a Spectre. The Council has stripped him of his position."

"That is not good enough! You know he's hiding somewhere in the Traverse. Send YOUR FLEET IN!"

I had to admit, Udina was a really good representative for Humanity.

_Dude had passion for his work._

"A fleet cannot track down one man," the Salarian Councilor replied, again being the voice of reason.

_But a fleet would save us a lot of heartache...Virmire would never happen if they did. Hell, the Salarian STG calls you for exactly that!_

"A Citadel fleet could secure the entire region. Keep the Geth from attacking any more of our colonies."

_A Good counterpoint._

I had to say, I loved a good debate.

"Or it could trigger a war with the Terminus Systems! We won't be dragged into a galactic confrontation over a few dozen Human colonies," the Turian councilor replied callously.

_War? _

They were literally just gangsters and pirates. I'm pretty sure none of the gangs of Omega had anything a professional military had to worry about it. Let alone anything that could even remotely take on a dreadnought. And it's not like the slavers of Terminus space don't attack your colonies already on the reg...

_I guess wars in general are bad though. Especially when they should be saving their strength for the real enemy._

"Every time Humanity asks for help you ignore us!"

The back and forth was getting heated now.

"Shepard's right! I'm sick of this Council and its anti-Human BULL-"

I wondered if this was the moment when Udina first entertained the idea of betraying the entire Council to Cerberus. I had almost forgotten why I had hated the character so much with how he'd been arguing our case.

"Ambassador!" the Asari councilor cut him off. "There is another solution. A way to stop Saren that does not require fleets or armies."

_Oh boy. Here it comes._

"No it's too soon," the Turian councilor pouted. "Humanity is not ready for the responsibilities that come with joining the Spectres!"

Udina seemed to do a face heel at the mention of the word. He was practically bouncing up and down now with giddiness.

"It was a TURIAN Spectre who betrayed this Council. And it was a Human who exposed him. I've earned this!"

_Shepard sounded a little entitled there. But that's none of my business._

The Asari and Salarian councilors looked at the Turian and nodded toward us. He looked down shaking his head.

_That's right bitch._

They all clicked something on their terminals.

"Commander Shepard, step forward."

Anderson gave Shepard a small smile before she walked toward the end of the walkway. Udina stepped out of her way. I noticed a crowd starting to gather along the sides of the Council Chamber.

_...Are matters of galactic importance just open to the public? If everything is public, wouldn't the identity of every Spectre ever inducted be common knowledge?_

"It is the decision of the Council that you be granted all the powers and privileges of the Special Tactics and Reconnaissance branch of the Citadel."

_Whatever._

"Spectres are not trained but chosen. Individuals forged in the fire of service and battle. Those whose actions elevate them above the rank and file."

"Spectres are an ideal, a symbol. The embodiment of courage, determination, and self-reliance. They are the right hand of the Council, instruments of our will."

I wished I could listen to ME's bg while this was going on. Although the ceremony is impressive, it didn't quite have the same hype without it...

"Spectres bear a great burden,-"

_Yeah, dealing with you._

"-they are protectors of galactic peace, both our first and last line of defense. The safety of the galaxy is theirs to uphold."

"You are the first Human Spectre, Commander. This is a great accomplishment for you and your species."

"I've been ready for this since Eden Prime," Shepard countered.

_I guess the least thing you could say about Shepard was that she wasn't lacking for self-confidence._

"We're sending you into the Traverse after Saren. He's a fugitive from justice, so you are authorized to use any means necessary to apprehend or eliminate him."

"I'll find him," Shepard said with a fire in her eyes.

"This meeting of the Council is adjourned."

_Thank god because the novelty of it had already worn off._

The Council members disbanded, leaving their podiums. Our little group did the opposite.

"Congratulations Commander."

Anderson outstretched his hand to Shepard. She shook it. Udina tried to get her attention.

"We got a lot of work to do, Shepard. You're going to need a ship, a crew, supplies...," he said tapering off in thought.

Anderson decided to give us something useful. "You'll get access to special equipment and training now. You should go down to the C-Sec Academy and speak to the Spectre requisitions officer."

_Yeah, where we'll get to BUY your special Spectre equipment and supplies! Yaaaay!_

"Anderson, come with me," Udina snapped. "I'll need your help to set all this up." The duo walked away already talking about their plans.

"I thought the Ambassador would be a little more grateful," Nar Rayya meekly said. "He didn't even thank you."

"What do you expect from a politician," Shepard deadpanned. "Come on."

_When did Shepard get jokes._

"Right behind you Shepard," Vakarian replied.

She turned to the C-Sec agent. She looked like she was sizing him up for the first time.

"You're a Turian. Why did you help us bring Saren down?"

_Not this again._

His mandibles flared before he stated his case.

"I couldn't find the proof I needed in my investigation. But I knew what was really going on. And my instincts were right! Saren's a traitor to the Council, and a disgrace to my people. I want to help you take him down Commander."

"You want to join our crew?" she asked incredulously.

"Without a doubt."

"You'd have to leave your job here at C-Sec."

"Having to leave C-Sec to help a Spectre chase down a rogue agent? I'd take that any day," Garrus replied.

She stared at him for a long time.

"...You can come along...but I'll be watching you."

As Shepard and Vakarian were making nice, I breathed a sigh of relief.

_Got everyone aboard...I hope._

Wrex was still missing after he had split up from us.

"So where we headed?" asked Williams.

"We're heading to that requisitions officer the Captain mentioned. We're going to need the best to hunt Saren down."

I doubt Shepard had enough credits to even purchase a license but I decided to follow her back to the elevators anyway. As Shepard walked ahead with Alenko and Williams hot on her tail, I stopped as I heard a guy to my left.

"I hope he's okay," he was muttering. Then he noticed me standing in front of him.

"I'm on a break. Talk to someone else if you need anything. I've got a lot on my mind."

_Side mission?_

"What's up? If you have a problem, I might be able to help." I told him.

"Hmmm...maybe you can. You're Alliance, right? You ever head out to the Traverse?"

"Yeah, I think we'll be headed that way," I replied casually. Although I was still trying to figure out why he thought I was a Alliance soldier.

"Really? My brother's the captain of a ship called the Majesty-"

_Haha, what kind of pansy ass ship name is that?_

"-and it was crossing the Traverse a few days ago when it disappeared. Just dropped right off the grid."

_Oh._

My face darkened.

I remembered this mission now. I already knew what happened to him. And I don't think Shepard would take time out of our busy schedule to follow up on one missing freighter.

"That usually means one of two things: they had massive mechanical failure, or they were attacked," the man guessed.

"Neither of those leaves a lot of hope," Garrus said grimly.

"I won't give up on my brother. Not yet. I've got the coordinates from the last transmission from his vessel. I'll forward them to your ship right away. Can you let me know as soon as you find him?"

I felt a tear well in my eye as he talked.

'_I won't give up on my brother'...dammit...I have to tell him..._

"I'm sorry sir...but the MSV Majesty was found by a...Turian scout ship a short while ago. Upon investigating, they deduced that it had been attacked by pirates."

"...What? Are you sure?! Were there any survivors?!" he asked in alarm.

"They went to investigate the planet the ship was orbiting and found their base of operations. They identified several bodies among the dead. The captain and crew of the ship were among them."

"...no...that can't...you...how do you know this?!"

"I'm sorry sir. If you wish to know more, talk to Barla Von. I'm sure he can provide proof that your brother was among the deceased...I...I'm sorry..."

"No...," he mumbled. "...excuse me..." He rushed off before I could say anything else.

I tried not to think about how many circumstances like this we would come across.

Losing a loved one is never easy.

Looking ahead, it seemed Shepard and her group had already taken a lift down.

"That was...unfortunate," Vakarian said quietly. "How did you know what happened to them?"

_What do I say to that._

I just decided to keep it cryptic. "I know a lot of things. Information just happens to be my strong suit," I said to him solemnly. I walked ahead without another word. Nar Rayya and Vakarian followed me into the elevator. I pressed a button to start our descent. We had gone halfway down in silence before Tali broke the ice.

"Are you sure you won't regret leaving Citadel Security to pursue Saren, Garrus?"

Looking over my shoulder, I could see him looking at her like she was insane.

"Fighting a rogue Spectre with countless lives at stake and no regulations to get in the way? I'd say that beats C-Sec."

It was hard to read Tali's expression with her wearing that mask.

"I'm pleased that the imminent destruction of all organic life has improved your career opportunities."

I had to laugh at that one. Vakarian didn't look as thrilled with her sass. He decided to turn the conversation to me.

"Hmph. So...what's your story? How do you know the Commander? Did you serve in her unit?"

"Oh, you know, I don't think I ever introduced myself back in the Wards. The name's Shield. Nice to meet you both," I said turning around to face them.

Garrus' question though had me wondering why everyone kept thinking I was an Alliance soldier. I realized my uniform probably didn't help.

_I guess I can put getting new armor on my list of things to do._

"I actually know Shepard as well as you two do," I said, which was relatively true. "I helped her back on Eden Prime with Williams and ended up hitching a ride on their ship. I knew Saren was involved with the attack so they ended up bringing me along as a witness to his trial too."

"Really?! I would have killed to have known there was a first hand witness of Saren going rogue. I'm sorry my investigation didn't produce any results," Garrus also added apologetically.

"Hey don't worry about it. I don't think they would have listened the first time even if you had."

"Maybe...but you're also lucky. In all my time at C-Sec, I've never witnessed a Council meeting in person before just now."

"Eh, it wasn't all that," I said nonchalantly. "And despite the setback it seemed to work out for the best in the end," I continued. "We exposed Saren for the traitor he is, got some allies in the process, and are one step closer now to kicking his ass."

"True. Have to say I'm looking forward to it," Garrus said grinning. Or the Turian equivalent at least.

Tali hung her head a little.

"I just wish the Council had listened to us back when the Geth forced us off our home planet. When we petitioned them to wipe out the Geth three hundred years ago, they did nothing."

"Maybe if they had, we wouldn't be in this mess," I quietly replied.

"...maybe."

Then she tilted her head, looking like she had just remembered something.

"Hey. Shield. Do you remember when we first met in the alley? How did you know my name?"

I had forgotten about that. I decided to drown her with my omniscience.

"Tali'Zorah Nar Rayya. A Quarian with close relationships to three members of the Admiralty Board. Currently on her pilgrimage. Ran into trouble when Saren sent a Turian mercenary after her. Presumed to have information vital to the Spectre."

I imagined her draw was dropping inside her helmet.

"How-"

"I work for the Shadow Broker. I know a lot of things I probably shouldn't."

"You work for the Broker?!" she exclaimed.

I realized she probably didn't have the best experience with him after all she'd been through.

"Oh yeah...by the way, sorry about all that. Fist betrayed the Broker for Saren. I apologize that he put you in harm's way. Doesn't really help our reputation or business."

_I'm not going to mention that the Broker actually might have been responsible for the hit. _

I never had been sure if he did or not. I remember from reading his dossiers that the Broker told Fist to kill Tali after he had her information. And Fist was going to too, but I guess he just decided to do it for Saren instead. I mean why else would Wrex have been hired if Fist was following instructions?

_Writing mistake? Who knows._

I returned to the company at hand when Garrus started talking.

"You recognized her as soon as we entered the alley. Did you recall all that information off the top of your head?" Garrus asked surprised.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that," I said tapping my noggin. "Photographic memory."

It left my mouth before I had time to think.

_Oh fuck._

"Impressive," Garrus remarked. "That'd sure be useful to have as an agent for C-Sec. Or any career I guess."

"I find it's a little selective though," I covered up. "Memorize a lot of information I get. But small things I encounter day-to-day? Not so much."

"Still, must be useful."

After saying that, the elevator reached our destination. As we exited the elevator and walked out onto the Presidium, I could see Shepard and her group farther ahead...talking to a Turian and a Hanar. In our approach, it sounded like the alien was getting its ass handed to it by Shepard.

"-you BIG, STUPID, JELLY FISH."

The giant glowing man of war backed off. The way its tentacles moved backwards was hypnotic. All of them seemed perfectly synchronized.

"This one apologizes. It will depart now, and will not intrude on the Presidium again."

_Poor thing must've been bashed pretty hard. With how polite they are, god knows how the words coming from Shepard's mouth affected its poor sensibilities._

"I see the Hanar has left. Thank you," the C-Sec agent replied after she had finished.

"Happy to help," she said with sarcasm.

"...for your assistance in the manner."

He handed Shepard some capsuled omni-gel and credits.

"Took you long enough," she replied turning around to us.

From there, it was just a relatively short walk to C-Sec HQ. Garrus led us on from there since he knew the way.

* * *

><p>Exiting the elevator, the first thing we saw was Wrex. Really looking at him for the first time, it dawned on me how fucking monstrous the Krogan were.<p>

_Like holy shit. _

He had to _at least_ be eight feet tall and that's being conservative. From what I could tell, the hump protruding from his back was literally half my size and the mahogany carapace on his head matched its height. His skin looked like leather and his blood red eyes only added to his intimidation factor. They weren't as frightening as Shepard's but still.

_And the scars on his face just made him look like an all around bad ass._

"Hey Shepard, I turned in Fist for my bounty. And after that fight we had, I've decided I want to join your group," he said in a deep gravelly tone.

"...what?"

Apparently Shepard hadn't actually recruited him yet.

_Damn._

"There's a storm coming Commander. With you and Saren right in the middle of it. And I want to be there for when it arrives."

She took a second to think it over.

"You know what. Whatever. We already have the Quarian and Turian coming along with us. One more alien couldn't hurt."

"Uh...are you sure we should bring him along Commander?" Williams said eyeing the Krogan.

"What? Afraid you're going to fall for my good looks?" Wrex mocked.

Shepard defended him...or rather what she had said.

"Williams, are you questioning my decision?"

"What? No Commander! I'm just-"

"Then it's decided. Garrus, can you show us where that Requisitions Officer is?"

Garrus responded with a "This way" and led us all downstairs to the armory.

It was a relatively small room. The first thing you saw was the requisitions officer behind his desk. Then the weapon displays and armor lining its walls came into view. I saw the door behind his right last. I hadn't recalled that being there in the game.

"One sec, looking you up," the officer replied, continuing to tap away at his computer.

Shepard shifted impatiently. Kaidan and Williams were behind her taking stock of the place. Wrex and Tali were admiring the shotguns on display. And Garrus apparently had his eyes on a sniper rifle. I decided to walk over to him.

He noticed my approach.

"The Armax Arsenal's Punisher series. I always wanted one of these," Garrus told me putting his hand against the case's glass. "Maximum stopping power with minimum recoil." He was practically drooling.

"Why don't you get one?" I said asking the obvious. Garrus seemed to entertain the idea.

"Could never justify purchasing it. Would take a several month's pay...with installments."

_Now I know what to get someone for their birthdayyyy._

"Well...it's not like you'll need credits to pay for rent or food on the Normandy."

"True."

He continued to stare at it.

"-Just let me set you up."

I turned back around in Shepard's direction. The Turian servicing her had a look of confusion on his face.

I had to say I was getting better at reading their facial expressions.

"This...this must be a mistake. System's telling me to offer you our select stock. Spectre." He looked up again and it seemed that the realization had finally hit him. "Well...I'd heard about that, but I didn't realize it was you. Sorry, Commander."

"Just show me what you have."

"I'll open the rare stocks for you Commander. You'll enjoy this." He walked away from his console and unlocked the door behind him. He motioned for Shepard to follow him. Williams tried to weasel her way in after them but he made a motion for her to stop. "Sorry, authorized access only."

Williams raised her hands up backing off.

* * *

><p>Wrex was starting to get rowdy, trying to bait Garrus into a debate about the Genophage when Shepard exited the back room. She walked out with the entire assortment of HMW spec weapons on her. My jaw dropped.<p>

"How...how did you afford all that?" I blurted.

She looked at me like I was stupid.

"They came with becoming a Spectre," she said with a cold tone.

The officer walked out after her, locking the door behind him. "You are from now on authorized to buy and distribute the Spectre class weapons to any you deem to choose...but the surplus weapons come at a hefty price."

"Noted," she said.

I couldn't contain my shock.

_Why...Why the hell did she get that shit for free?_

I always had wished you had gotten them in the game.

_It made sense for Spectres to get the guns made specifically for Spectres but-_

A thought hit my mind.

_I had always Wished..._

The after thought became a fully-fleshed out theory wrapped in tinfoil. I clenched my fist and opened it.

_This is crazy...but, then I guess what the hell is all this?_

I shut my eyes and took a deep breath.

I flexed every muscle in my body.

I brought my right hand up and curled my fingers, focusing all my thoughts on my fist.

_Channel it, think dark energy, defy gravity, feel it flow through you...lift an object with your mind...let the force guide you..._

I opened my eyes and made a dramatic pushing motion at the officer with my hand.

He continued to stand where he was, talking with the Commander.

Luckily Tali was the only one who had seen it.

"Uh-"

"Just stretching," I lied as I quickly pulled my right hand over my head.

She didn't know Human custom well enough to dispute what she had seen.

"Oh...okay."

_...that was embarrassing. So much for that theory._

Wrex settled for just getting some weapon mods and Alenko purchased kinetic buffers for his suit. The rest of us though decided we didn't want anything. That and we probably didn't have enough money to get what we did.

As we left the room, Shepard contacted Anderson. "Captain, we got what we needed. Are we ready to depart?"

"Not yet Commander. We need a couple more hours to sort the details out. Take some time off. Explore some of the facilities the Citadel has to offer. We'll call you when we figure everything out."

Shepard frowned as she took her hand off her earpiece. "Do they really expect us to sit around for a couple of hours?"

"Actually," Garrus piped up. "Think I could take leave Commander? I was going to just send a message but if we have time, I'd like to put my resignation in personally with my boss."

"Go ahead. Just be here when it's time to leave or you'll find yourself left behind."

"Noted Commander."

_Speaking of things to do._

"Hey Commander...you wouldn't have happened to come across any data files or an OSD when you dealt with Fist did you?"

"Actually," she said unclipping one from her belt and holding it up. "Why do you ask?"

She stared at me like I had something to hide.

"Uh, Barla Von wanted that as payment for telling us about the Krogan."

"Are you sure _Barla Von_ wants this information?" She turned to Kaidan. "Is this true?"

"Yes Commander," Kaidan affirmed.

"Then I'll take it to him myself," she said. "Go find something to do until we get back."

"Will do," I said with attitude.

_Well, while we're getting stuff out of the way..._

I turned to the Chief. "Also, Williams. I think someone was looking for you at the Embassies. He said he knew someone from the 212."

"What? Who?" she barked.

"Does a Nirali Bhatia sound familiar to you?"

She looked at the Commander.

"We'll take a look at it." Shepard looked back to me. "Stay out of trouble."

Then she seemed to have second thoughts. "Actually, Alenko, I want you to watch him again. Make sure he doesn't do anything he might regret."

"...Of course Commander!"

_Sigh._

She left with the rest of the crew in tow. I turned to stare at Kaidan.

"...So...Want to go shopping?"

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

**In the Next Chapter: A Nice stroll through the Citadel; But suddenly: Blackmailers! Murder! Back-room politics!**

**Tune in next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made.**


	9. Our Ship Sets into Space

We ended up walking through the markets of whatever Ward the first game took place in. We passed by the volus merchant Expat and hilarious ME throwaway where a Human customer was trying to return something to a racist-

_Or was it speciest?_

-Turian shopkeeper. I decided I might try to help the poor guy out in the future if I got the chance as two years from now he was still trying to get that damn refund. We might have even passed Conrad Verner on our way downstairs too, though I hadn't been sure.

Once we were in the Lower Markets, I sat myself up on a pile of crates across from Morlan's shop.

"What are we doing here?" Kaidan finally asked as he realized I was done window shopping.

"Just admiring the sights," I replied scanning the floor.

_He should be here...unless I missed him._

I looked at the crowd shuffling through the area for several more minutes before Kaidan piped up again.

"...Am I supposed to be looking for someone?" he queried.

I waited a while to respond.

"I guess not..." I replied, frowning as I hopped off my crate. "Follow me."

I walked up to Morlan's booth which was curiously being ignored by a lot of people.

"Hello there. Welcome to Morlan's famous shop! You want many good supplies yes?" the Salarian said eagerly.

I eyed the amphibian suspiciously.

"You wouldn't happen to remember talking to a Turian recently would you?"

"A...Turian? No..I didn't talk to any-Why? Why do you ask?"

"Thanks," I said walking away from him.

"What was that aboot?" the Canadian asked me.

I was about to answer him when I saw who we were looking for. He had just walked down from the way we had come in.

I decided to yell out to him. "Vakarian! Long time no see!"

He looked at us shocked.

"Shield. Lieutenant. What are you two doing down here?" he questioned when we got into earshot.

"I was actually asking the same thing," Kaidan replied.

I couldn't help it as a sly grin came across my face. "I thought you might come down here. For that shop keeper Dr. Michel mentioned. I said we'd help you with that didn't I?"

I couldn't quite read the expression the Turian had on his face. He seemed...concerned?

"How'd you know the merchant blackmailing her was down here?" Garrus asked.

"The shadiest shop keeps are in the Lower Markets. Thought the one you were looking for was probably here," I said lying through my teeth.

"I guess some back-up never hurt." He looked around. "Where's Shepard?"

"She's taking care of some other business," Kaidan told him this time.

"...well." He turned his head towards Morlan. "Let's not keep him waiting."

Garrus took the lead as we walked back to Morlan's booth. The Salarian didn't look as pleased to see us this time.

"I heard you were looking for a delivery of medical supplies," Garrus said to him, looking around shiftily.

"But...I was told the doctor would be bringing them," Morlan replied, wiping his forehead.

"Change of plans," Garrus bluntly told him.

"A change? But...the doctor...I'don't...this is not right Turian," he started chattering.

"Shut up Morlan! I told Banes you'd screw this up!"

We all looked to the voice in alarm. The Krogan wasn't as big as Wrex but...

_I can't imagine who in their right mind would willingly fight one. I realllllly hope we can talk him down without Shepard._

"What the hell is going on here? Who are you?"

"Why don't you leave the good doctor alone?" Garrus 'asked'.

"We can end this if you just bring me those supplies. Otherwise, I'll start telling people about the doctor's little secret."

I channeled my inner Shepard.

"If you do that you'll shut down that clinic," I pointed out. "What if someone needs help?...What if you need help?"

I recited the line to the best of my memory. I had to say, my grizzled voice made it sound pretty threatening.

"Hey! Hold on there! I'm just a middleman."

I breathed a sigh of relief.

"This is way more than I bargained for," the Krogan said beginning to high tail it away.

_Thank god._

"Thank you Human," Morlan said popping out from under his counter. "It is good to see him humbled so."

"What do you know about Banes?" Garrus interrogated.

"I never met him Turian. I only worked with the one who spoke with the Doctor."

"Guess we should inform the Dr. Michel on what happened here," I told Garrus.

"Yeah, she might be able to tell us more about Banes," Kaidan added.

* * *

><p>"Oh, Garrus. How did things go?" Dr. Michel asked upon our arrival.<p>

"With Fist? Pretty good, we found the Quarian and she agreed to help us with our investigation. We also happened to come across your blackmailer Doctor. He won't be bothering you anymore."

"Really?! Oh, that's such a relief to hear," she said. "I can't pay you for your help but I can give you a discount on any supplies you purchase here."

"Oh, that's not necessary," Garrus tried to tell her.

"Nonsense. You've helped me so much. It's the least I can do!"

"Well in that case, thanks Doctor!" I said cheerfully.

_A discount here will definitely score us some points with the boss._

"Dr. Michel, does the name Banes mean anything to you?" Kaidan asked.

"Banes? Do you mean Armistan Banes? I worked together with a man by that name a long time ago."

_Long time ago?...How old is this chick?_

"What do you know about him?" Garrus questioned.

"Last I heard, the Alliance Military was contracting him for some research in the Traverse."

"The Captain might know something about that," Kaidan interjected.

"I wish I could tell you more..." she trailed off.

"Don't worry about it Doc. I know where to go from here," I replied.

"Do you?" Kaidan said incredulously.

_Anderson's too busy getting our arrangements for us to go bother him right now. _

And since I already knew what the next step was, there was no need to go running all across the Citadel.

"I realized who Banes was when the Dr. Michel gave us his full name. He was contracted for work on an Alliance research ship. Unfortunately, the Alliance recently found that ship drifting in space. Banes was found inside...dead," I finished looking at Dr. Michel. I realized half way through that she probably didn't need to hear that.

"Oh my god," the Dr. Michel said horrified.

"That Krogan seemed to think he was very much alive," Garrus pointed out.

"The dude was apparently doing high level stuff for the Alliance. The news of his death isn't exactly public. Someone might have stolen his name to get this equipment, someone who must have had high enough clearance to know that." I thought of a way to segue to where we needed to go. "I was actually supposed to look into it for the Broker. Apparently the marines under the command of an Admiral Kahoku were the ones to find it. I actually overheard from someone that the Admiral's been trying to get an appointment at the Citadel Tower."

"Sounds as good a place as any to start," Garrus concluded.

I turned to Kaidan and asked if he was in.

"Well, Shepard did order me to watch you," he said.

"Well Then. It's decided," I said.

* * *

><p>In the elevator ride up the tower, our conversation was mostly about how we had taken care of those thugs in the Doctor's office and alleyway. There was quite a large amount of back patting going around.<p>

"I have to say, your biotics are impressive, Lieutenant," Garrus complimented Kaidan. "I'm surprised that humans stopped using the L2 configuration with results like yours."

"Hey, my headaches can be pretty bad, and I'm one of the lucky L2 implants. The L3's are a lot safer," Kaidan said.

"If that was true, why don't you get retrofitted?" I asked.

_Now's as good as any to get his sad, sad childhood backstory of being a Biotic and his time at BAaT training camp._

"The retrofits from L2 to L3 can be dangerous. Few people come away from those unscarred. My migraines are bad but I'd rather have them then become a paraplegic."

"Fair enough," I commented.

"But why change at all when the L2's spike stronger? Humanity will be judged by the sacrifices its people are willing to make. The Turians would have kept the L2 implants," Vakarian remarked solemnly.

"There's a fine line though between self-sacrifice and unnecessary hardship. Not every one needs to have the biotic capabilities of an Asari," Kaidan bit back.

"If you want the people you care about to live in safety and comfort, sometimes you have to sacrifice your own," Garrus replied sagely.

Both had good points. They didn't have time to continue their debate though as the doors of the elevator slid open. The beautiful scenery of the Tower's interior erupted into view.

We had actually walked a good amount, maneuvering around a lot of boulders and ducking under the low hanging branches of the trees there before our group came to a stop. They were wondering why I had suddenly just frozen in place. I couldn't find my breath to respond as I stared at the giant ass bug in front of me for the very first time.

The creature was busy tapping away at a console attached to one of the Chamber's pillars. It had a cute little rose bib around its neck, which greatly contrasted with the green monstrosity it was being worn by. The head and body of a man-sized caterpillar sprouted from the neck of what seemed to be some kind of Lovecraftian nightmare. I tried to stay the horror that crept across my face.

Garrus finally seemed to notice the reason for my pause. "First time noticing the Keepers huh?"

I just stood in place, making sure I didn't make any sudden moves.

_I can see how they were created by the Reapers. No other sick, twisted depraved-_

"Not many people actually see them when they first arrive. They're so unimposing most go by unnoticed. When you do see your first however, you start to see them just about everywhere."

_Unimposing my ass. That thing was the product of Satan. But Garrus was right. There was no way we hadn't run across any back in the Presidium or Wards._

"But after a while, they just kind of slip right back into obscurity. Blend into your daily routine. They're completely harmless though. Worst thing they might do is rearrange your desk. They're notorious for that," Garrus continued.

_I can't believe I hadn't noticed these monsters. Horrors walking around in plain sight. The Reapers had picked the perfect thralls to attend to their doomsday device. _

"What do they actually do?" Kaidan asked curiously.

"Their believed to be made by the Protheans for the sole purpose of maintaining the Citadel. Probably always have," Garrus responded.

After overcoming my paralysis, I finally forced my legs to move. I circled around it, making sure to give it a wide berth. Once we passed the Keeper and continued on, Kaidan spotted the Admiral. He was near the staircase leading to the Council Chambers, dressed head to toe in Alliance uniform. A blue overcoat, blue shoulder pads, blue cap, the whole shebang.

"Admiral Kahoku?" Kaidan asked once we got close enough.

"That would be me," he responded turning away from his console. Kaidan gave him a salute. Kahoku returned it. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"We're here on behalf of Commander Shepard. Your men were the one who found Banes am I correct?" I asked him.

He seemed to take pause. I could tell he was sizing us up. The fact that a C-Sec agent and two 'marines' were the ones asking him about this top secret case though were enough to placate his suspicions.

"...Yes, one of my crews found him. Frozen stiff on board a derelict vessel. I sent a recon group to investigate the system where we found the body," he told us. Then his face grew grave. "But we lost contact yesterday. Now I can't get clearance to check it out...suddenly it's a restricted area! But if you are with Shepard, that doesn't apply to her. Spectres can go anywhere they want. You could find out why my team dropped out of contact."

"We'll find them Admiral," Alenko assured him.

"I appreciate that soldier. I was running out of options. I'm going to stay here and see if I can find anything out through official channels. Won't hold my breath though."

"We'll get back to you as soon as we find them," I said. He nodded and turned back toward his console.

"I'll upload the info where my team was last seen to your omni-tool. Maybe YOU can get some answers."

I wanted to tell him then and there about what happened to his soldiers. Tell him about Cerberus. Tell him to just drop everything and let it go. Tell him to hide. I know I could have. But I didn't. I just turned and walked away with the others. I couldn't see how I could address the issue without seeming sketchy so I was going to just let him die. Because I was too concerned with my own hide. I swore to myself.

_I need to go back._

"Dead scientist. Missing marines. Restricted area. This whole thing smells fishy," Garrus said.

"Yeah, I don't like it either," Kaidan agreed.

_There would be other opportunities to save him. _

I just decided to voice my own opinion to the group. "We should probably tell the Commander about it."

"Agreed. Think it's about time we all met back up?" Kaidan pondered.

"I think she would give us a call if she was ready," I assured him. I thought of something to keep us occupied. "...you ever been to Flux?"

* * *

><p>"I got big news for you Shepard. Captain Anderson is stepping down as commanding officer of the Normandy. The ship is yours now."<p>

The news hit her like a punch to the gut. She looked to Anderson in disbelief.

"She's quick and quiet and you know the crew. Perfect ship for a Spectre. Treat her well Commander."

His complacency with this boggled her mind.

"What? The Normandy belongs to you!" she protested.

Anderson replied with a matter of fact tone. "You needed your own ship. A Spectre can't answer to anyone but the Council. And it's time for me to step down."

She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

_It couldn't be tru_e_. The Captain would never willingly take himself out of a fight._

"Come clean with me, Captain. You owe me that much," she pried.

He looked at the Normandy while he spoke.

"I was in your shoes twenty years ago, Shepard. They were once considering me for the Spectres."

_That degenerate at the club...he couldn't have been telling the truth. _

"But I failed. I couldn't make the cut. It's not something I'm proud of," he said now staring at her. "Ask me later and I'll tell you the whole story. For now, all you need to know is I was sent on a mission with Saren, and he made sure the Council rejected me."

She could clearly see the regret in his eyes. In all her years of knowing him, she had never heard of this once.

"I had my shot. It came and went. Now you have a chance to make up for my mistakes."

She clenched her fists.

_And Saren was to blame. Everything always came back to Saren._

"Saren's not going to get away with this. Not this time," she growled.

Anderson frowned at her. "Saren's gone. Don't even try to find him. But we know what he's after: the Conduit. He's got his Geth scouring the Traverse looking for clues."

The Ambassador pushed his way back into the conversation. "We've had reports of Geth in the Theseus system shortly before our colony there dropped out of contact. And there have been sightings around the Pax System."

"Find out what Saren was after on Feros and in the Pax System. Maybe you can figure out where the Conduit is before he does," Anderson briefed her.

"Anything else?" she asked, trying to grasp everything she had just heard.

"We have one more lead. Matriarch Benezia, the other voice on that recording. She has a daughter, a scientist who specializes in the Protheans."

Shepard was sure it wasn't a coincidence.

_Saren and Benezia must have been planning this for a long time._

"We don't know if she's involved but it might be a good idea to try and find her. See what she knows. Her name's Liara. Dr. Liara T'Soni. We have reports she was exploring an archaeological dig on one of the uncharted worlds in the Artemis Tau Cluster," Udina finished.

Shield interrupted their conversation. "Hey! You know one of those experts I had mentioned worked on Therum? I'm pretty sure Dr. T'Soni was one of them. We should definitely stop there first. An expert on the Protheans would definitely be helpful in finding the Conduit! I'm sure of it!"

_Shield just suggested we find the daughter of one of Saren's allies. A woman who also just happened to be studying the Protheans. The race that created the Conduit Saren and them were now searching for. It was sickeningly obvious._

The fact that the Krogan mercenary who joined their group was connected with him through the Broker only further confirmed her suspicions. She just needed to wait for Fist's OSD to return to her decrypted. She had a copy of it sent to the Alliance before fulfilling Shield's bargain with the Volus. The data on that disk would be the evidence she needed to prove that Saren and the Broker could still be working together. Shield's claims and the Broker hiring Wrex could have just been a ruse to cover their partnership. She fully expected the two to betray her at some point in their mission. She decided to make it sooner rather than later.

She responded immediately after Shield had finished talking.

"Sounds like we should head for the Artemis Tau cluster," she said still facing Anderson and the Ambassador. She noticed Anderson was staring at Shield with an expression she couldn't quite place. The Captain turned his attention back to her after she spoke.

"It's your decision Commander. You're a Spectre now. You don't answer to us." She grimaced as the Captain said it.

"But your actions still reflect on Humanity as a whole. You make a mess and I get stuck cleaning it up," Udina reminded her.

_I only have one thing to worry about cleaning up._

"I'll take care of Saren," Shepard said. "You can take care of the political fallout."

"Not exactly the answer I was looking for Shepard. Remember: you were a Human long before you were a Spectre."

_Remember...Remember I was a Human?! How dare he..._

Anger swelled inside her as she stared at him. She gritted her teeth to stop herself from doing something she might regret.

"I have a meeting to get to. Captain Anderson can answer any questions you might have," the Ambassador said, taking his leave.

She waited 'til he was out of earshot before addressing the Captain.

"You can't tell me you're just planning on staying here?!"

"Honestly? Yes, this isn't how I pictured my career coming to an end. Pushing papers isn't really my thing." She fully agreed. "But you're the only one who can stop Saren. I believe in you Shepard. If that means I have to step aside, so be it." Her agreement with him ended there. This was his ship.

She just ended up muttering "I should go," when they were done talking. Though she almost went blind with rage when she thought she heard Shield suppressing a snicker behind her.

_What the hell does he find so funny._

"I'll be here on the station if you need anything," the Captain told them before saluting her and leaving for the elevator. She turned around for a moment, watching him leave the dock. Then she turned to glare at Shield.

* * *

><p>The Geth ships were swarming towards the space station. Joker counted no less than seven. He'd be damned though if he let the Geth attack the Citadel with all the defenseless children aboard.<p>

He kicked the Normandy into high gear. Banking above them in the deep vacuum of space, Joker then pulled the Normandy into a nose dive upon the enemy fleet. The bastards didn't even know what hit them as the Normandy's prototype Javelin torpedoes rained down upon them from above. Only two cruisers were left after the onslaught. Clicking several buttons on his interface, he activated the Normandy's GARDIAN lasers just in time as he sped past the last two Geth ships. Their hulls were torn to shreds due to their proximity to the Normandy. Joker was about to celebrate before he looked back on his radar to find that they weren't yet done. A Geth dreadnought rivaling the Destiny Ascension had just dropped out of FTL. It seemed to be dead set on destroying the station and all the helpless baby animals aboard it too.

"Oh...you want some more do you?" Joker whispered under his breath.

He disengaged the Normandy's stealth drive and piloted the ship right into the Geth's line of sight.

"Oh No!" the robots said in their robotic voices, frightened like school girls. School girl robots that is. "It's Joker!"

"Say hello to my little friend," Joker said with a grin as he activated the Normandy's mass accelerator. "Pew pew pew."

The dreadnought blew to smithereens. The explosion could be seen by everyone on the station. They all chanted his name as its vapor trails showered over the Presidium. The newly crowned Ms. Alliance came up behind him and laid her arms across his chest. "Wow Joker, you're too much man for me. I'm going to have to share you with the rest of the Alliance's lingerie cover girls," she whispered into his ear.

"Yeaaaah," Joker said kicking back in his chair, admiring his handiwork. Just another day's work for the Alliance's number one pilot.

He jumped as a feminine voice announced Shepard's arrival over the intercom.

"Logged. The Commanding Officer is aboard. XO Pressly stands relieved."

_Stupid VI._

Joker swiveled his chair around to face the Commander and the new members of the crew just arriving. Udina had just left announcing the Normandy's newest assignment. And that the Commander would be the one overseeing it instead of the Captain. As if that wasn't shock enough, the make up of Shepard's shore party lent even more insanity to the day. The single file line of well trained soldiers he thought would exit the airlock turned out to be a weird parade of aliens instead.

His eyes practically bugged when he saw the Krogan enter the ships' bridge. He had to do a double take to make sure he wasn't seeing things. The behemoth was practically twice his size and had a look that said "I'll beat you to death with your own arm." The alien could snap him in half like a twig if he wanted. Probably did. Although a trip to the shower could do the same to him too. The two made brief eye contact before the Krogan snorted and started trotting toward the ship's Command Center.

_Holy shi-_

Joker didn't have time to process the thought as the next person he saw walking aboard was a Turian.

_Where the hell is Shepard getting these guys?!_

He was wearing blue and black armor with a prominent headpiece covering his eye. Obviously C-Sec. He followed the Krogan's path down the neck of the ship. The absurdity didn't stop there as a Quarian walked out next, talking about Alliance Admirals or something with Shield. He had never seen one in person before and her suit left a lot to the imagination. Then Kaidan and Chief Williams exited, giving each other the stink eye. He didn't know what that was about and he didn't want to ask.

Shepard was the last one out of the airlock. And she did not look happy.

_Probably didn't take the news well. She and the Captain had been pretty close. _

She saw him staring at her and started to approach. He slowly swiveled his chair back to his console.

"I heard what happened to Captain Anderson. Survives a hundred battles, and then gets taken down by back room politics. Just watch your back Commander. Things go bad on this mission, you're next on their chopping block."

He had said it half joking but there might have been some truth in his words.

"Captain Anderson should be the one in charge. It's like I'm stealing the ship from him."

The news obviously had her down. He tried his best to cheer her up.

"Yeah the Captain got screwed. But it's not like you could've stopped it. Nobody's blaming you. Everyone on this ship is behind you, Commander. One hundred percent."

He looked down at the Normandy's controls and clicked a few buttons. A small square turned green in the left uppermost corner.

"Intercom's open. If you've got anything you want to say to the crew, now's the time," he told her.

She took almost no time leaning over him to speak into the comm.

"Listen up Normandy. This is your Commander speaking...And we have our orders: find Saren before he finds the Conduit."

She paused for dramatic effect.

"And I refuse to let anything get in the way of that mission! We all know what happened on Eden Prime. We saw the destruction. We saw the bodies. We saw what Saren did. And I plan to make him pay! Wherever Saren goes, we'll follow. Wherever he searches for the Conduit, we'll be there. We will hunt him to the very ends of the galaxy and bring him down!"

The words left her mouth without a break. It was like she had practiced the thing the entire day.

"None of the other species has the guts, grit, or balls to deal with this. So it's up to us. We're the only ones who can stop Saren. And I swear to you all, we WILL stop him."

Her fiery oratory definitely had him feeling something.

_Patriotism. Duty. Or maybe it was just hunger. Probably a little of columns A, B, and C._

He had skipped lunch today. He looked up at Shepard realizing she was finished.

"Good job Commander. You'd make him proud."

"The Captain gave up everything so I could have this chance. We can't fail," she said walking away.

"Yes ma'am!" he replied, flicking on the rest of the Normandy's primary systems. He undocked the Normandy from the bay's arms and swerved the ship around. Joker suspected the dampeners might need tuning as he felt a kick with the ignition of the thrusters. Once fired up, the Normandy's engines propelled them away from the space station and toward the Relay.

The Hunt for Saren had begun.

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

**On that note, Thank God the Prologue is finally over! I had planned for Chapters '1'-10 to just be Act 0, laying the foundation for our story. I also had hoped to finish it before New Year's but Oh well **¯\_(ツ)_/¯

**With this we can officially move on to Act 1: The Throwdown on Therum!**

**Less standard ME dialogue. Less canned events. More twists, original content, and...things!**

**In the Next Chapter: Revelation. Convocation. ME-nation! The Normandy's First Assignment!**

**Tune in next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


	10. Making the Most of it

My head was throbbing. The shrill ringing of an alarm was assaulting my eardrums. I tossed and turned in my bed wishing it would stop. I flinched when I heard someone slam open my room's door.

"Dude, didn't you have a chemistry exam at nine?"

_What._

I flung off my covers and stared at my alarm clock.

9:12 am.

"Oh Shit! Are you fucking serious?!" I yelled flying out of bed. I threw on the first pair of jeans and shirt I saw in my laundry hamper. As I hopped to my back pack with one leg stuck in my pants, my roommate responded "Ooh, good luck." I knocked him out of the way as I slung my back pack over my shoulder, careening out of my room.

_Holyyy fuck._

As I ran down our corridor and into our living space, I stopped to see the rest of my roommates chilling around the TV eating breakfast. I paused to see that they were watching the fourth season finale of Breaking Bad.

_Such a go-I don't have fucking time._

I turned around and put my hand around the door knob leading out of our suite. My mom yelled at me from the kitchen as I began to turn it. "You sure you don't want breakfast hon'?"

"MOM, DOES IT LOOK LIKE I HAVE TIME FOR FOOD?"

I swung open the door and began sprinting down the hallway. I ran for what felt like a mile before I realized I wasn't moving. I looked around me. I was floating in space. Up-side down. Everything was pitch-black. I noticed my back pack straps were gone.

"Where the hell did they go?" I asked myself staring at my shoulders.

Then my head was blasted with a deafening scream.

I shut my eyes when the sound assaulted my ears, the unpleasant cacophony that came after it sounded like nails dragging along a chalkboard. Immediately after I shut them, textures, shapes, images, pictures, scenes, worlds flitted by one after another. The incoherent chattering/screams of long forgotten races accompanied them. The chaotic nature of the message pervaded my brain, snaked through every thought. The sounds and images slithering through my head were too much, and I screamed in horror only to find no sound leaving my mouth.

A Blood Red backdrop, A Black world, then nothing.

I woke up with a loud shout.

"HEY! I'm trying to get some Sleep!"

I could make out the faint red of Fredericks crew cut across from me in the dark.

"Sorry," I mumbled a little too soft for him to hear several minutes later. The snoring coming from the bunk across from me though told me he had already fallen back asleep. Beads of sweat still dripped across my face.

It had only been a nightmare. But I could have sworn it was real. I laid my head back on my pillow. I thought it had been real.

_...Real life. _

I realized the dream was relatively 'realer' than anything around me. I've only been in this nightmare for two days...but it's felt like it's already been an eternity with how much has happened to me.

_How much time has passed back home since I woke up here? Does time even pass the same? If it did, two days from Friday night would make it Sunday night. But just waking up now meant I had really started my third, which meant it Was Monday, the start of Finals week._

_I'm actually going to miss my exams. I'm going to fail that shit._

I was gripped in panic for a good second before I realized the absurdity of it. Right now I was in a fucking fantasy. Living in a space ship with aliens right below me.

_Why the fuck am I worrying about class?_

I still had no idea how I had ended here. Although the most obvious answer was right before me, I opted to think on a more optimistic note. Back in the deep recesses of my mind, I fumbled for anything that could explain my insanity.

_Was I comatose back in the real world? Lying in my bed waiting for someone to find me? Or was I already found and just waiting for someone to pull the plug? Oh god, I hope I'm not wandering around my room blathering about Shepard and Reapers. That would fucking blow...Did I just stop existing when I woke up on Prime, with life going on as usual without me? Was I teleported here in some kind of dimensional shift with the world stopping just as I left it? _

That last one would probably the one to wish for. I wouldn't have to deal with all that other shit associated with the others.

_...Was I dead?_

I rubbed my eyes. Ever since I had woken up in that alley way, I hadn't had time to just stop for a few minutes and think to myself with no one around to bother me.

_First it had been Powell making things difficult, then the events at the spaceport. Then focusing on getting to the Normandy, my new appearance, the events of the Med bay, dealing with Shepard, the Trial on the Citadel, Spectres, Saren, FUCKING SHIT._

I stared at the ceiling. I had become so engrossed in everything that had happened. Reacting to everything that came across me like it was just part of my daily routine. I had adjusted to everything I had seen way too fast.

_Seeing Shepard...I immediately just thought how I was going to get involved in her story. Not that the Space marines or Geth I was seeing were fictional characters. Seeing Nihlus for the first time too...it might have alarmed me to see the Turian dead but the next one I saw was no big deal. It was like that for every alien I saw for that matter. I was ambivalent to seeing freaking aliens everywhere. What the Fuck. And oh my god. Killing that Turian...I had actually murdered somebody. You have grandiose daydreams about having to kill someone in self-defense sometimes but...Jesus. And besides the rush of adrenaline and vomiting, I had just gone on without giving it a second thought._

It scared me to think how fast I had adapted to the situation. How fast I forgot none of this was real. How could it be real?

_And speaking of real...how do I get back to the real world. How do I get myself out of this place?_

I lied in the bunk for several more minutes repeating the question over and over in my head.

_Will it happen after I finish the game? After Shepard beats Saren? Will I just wake up in my bed? Or will I have to see the entire trilogy through? Oh shit._

I would have to live to see the entire thing through. Now this line of thought racked my mind.

_What happened if I were to die? Would the mission reset? Would I wake up in this bunk on the Normandy? Would I wake up in my actual bed? Would I just straight up die for real? ...Fuck I could already be dead and all this some weird Purgatory._

I wasn't willing to really consider any of those no matter how plausible. I loathe admitting that I waited for a good amount of time hoping some omniscient being might reveal itself and give me the rundown of my situation. It didn't happen. No matter how much I egged it on in my thoughts. Having no other options available, I resolved to take my predicament into my own hands.

This shit might be fake. My time here might be temporary.

_Hopefully. _

And even if I was only here for the events of the First Game.

_God I hope so._

I decided I would leave this place in the best state possible. I couldn't sit back knowing I had the power to change things for the better in this little fantasy. Admiral Kahoku came to mind.

_I'm not going to let that ol' bastard die just yet. Aaaaaand its not like I really have any other options available._

I jumped off the top of my bunk and walked to the Normandy's bathroom. As I walked out of the room, I passed Shepard who was talking to Kaidan at his terminal. I didn't really overhear anything from their conversation.

_Probably talking about BaAT and L2 biotics._

I realized Shepard was one too. A biotic that is. And a good one at that. Then her service record came to mind.

_The Butcher of Torfan..._

What Barla had told me resounded in my head.

_She obviously had to have been the Butcher...but what else was a part of Shepard's history?_

My first thought was that I should search her name on Mass Effect's version of the internet. Then I realized I still didn't know how to work my Omni-tool. As I unzipped at the stall, I made getting that tutorial in Chakwas' office my first priority.

Then my stomach rumbled.

_Maybe a bite to eat too._

* * *

><p>I walked up the steps. Joker was next on my list of people to talk to. Not like I had anything better to do while I was stuck on the ship. I imagined it would take a good amount of time for us to reach Therum even with faster than light travel. Reasons for talking to him included him knowing where we were currently were, how long it would take to get to our destination, and I was actually kind of hoping the dude could get me in a better mood. He <em>was<em> called Joker for a reason. As I passed by the ships' star map, I noticed Pressly pretending to bend over a control panel, glancing at me out of the corner of his eye. The look didn't seem particularly friendly. I pretended I didn't see him as I walked on by.

"So, you must be that criminal informant we have on our ship?"

_God Dammit._

"Uh...I wouldn't exactly call myself a criminal," I remarked.

"But you do work for the Shadow Broker right? From what I've been told, he runs one of the biggest criminal consortiums in the Milky Way."

I gave him a look indicating he was out of his mind.

"He's not exactly a criminal...per say. The dude sells and buys information. Sometimes legitimately. And sometimes in a less than legal fashion. If you don't like the way he does business though, take it up with him."

The back and forth we had for the rest of the conversation was pretty much this. I would say the Broker isn't a criminal mastermind (which he was) and Pressly would argue otherwise. Even though the dude admitted he had never heard of the Broker until recently. It was like the guy wanted to bitch about something. I guessed if it wasn't about the aliens Shepard had brought aboard, it would be about the one outsider that Shepard actually seemed to hate too.

I had the sick thought of letting him go down with the Normandy in the Collector attack months from now.

_Even you'll be saved when I'm done here Pressly. Whether I like it or not._

I was eventually able to end the conversation with a "Nice meeting you," and escaped before he could say anything else. I continued further down the bow of the Normandy until I reached our pilot. I stopped right beside him so he could see it was me. He was still staring at the Normandy's interface when he spoke.

"Hey Rod, how are you adjusting to military life so far?"

"...Sorry?" I said, thinking he had mistaken me for someone else.

"Oh...I thought that was your name. Rodder something. Thought it would be easier to just shorten it to Rod."

"Ah...that's fine with me," I replied. I actually kind of liked it. "And it's been pretty alright so far."

"Good to hear, good to hear. By the way, you ever find that Beginner's guide for using Omni-tools?"

"I just got it. And it was actually pretty helpful. Their a lot easier than I thought to get the hang of. You could say I'm a pro now."

"Yeah, they do tend to make the interface real simple so even the illiterate can use them...no offense," he added after finishing.

_Touch_é.

I grinned. "None taken."

He looked up at me for the first time. "So...did ya want something in particular or did you just want to keep me company?"

I returned his gaze. "I was just wondering where we were currently headed."

"Well," Joker started. "We were just entering the Athens System when all of a sudden, Admiral Hackett from Alliance Command radioed us. The guy in charge of the entire fifth fleet. Said slavers were in the area and asked us to check it out. He suspected their base of operations was around Macedon so we're headed there now."

_Slavers? Macedon? Neither of those were Therum. _

And I definitely didn't remember fighting any slavers for a UNC mission.

"Uh, wasn't the Asari we're looking for in the Knossos system? Why aren't we headed there first?" I asked.

"I don't know man, I just fly the ship. Shepard and Pressly point out a place on the map, then I get us there. Take it up with them."

He seemed to get really defensive at my question. His reaction toward it actually surprised me. "Hey, I didn't mean to make it sound like it was a bad call or anything. Just curious."

He let out a sigh. "Sorry. I guess I've been a little on edge. Pressly, Adams and some others-" He stared at the red head behind me who had joked with him before. "-are still wondering if I'm 'qualified' to fly the ship. Whenever someone has a question for me, it's usually a critique of my flying. It's a little stressful when everyone's gunning for you."

"They're people gunning for you?" I inquired.

"Uh yeah. You know how I mentioned I was the best pilot in the Alliance? A lot of people didn't feel that way...despite all my commendations and records. You know, I wasn't even originally supposed to fly this ship."

The events of his stand-alone comic were still pretty fresh in my mind.

"Oh my god, you were the one who hijacked the SR-1 for a test run weren't you," I said feigning to connect the dots, like I had heard the story from some second hand source.

He eyed me with superstition. "...I heard you can do that."

"Do what?" I asked with genuinely curious.

"Knowing about secret things that should be...secret." He looked around like someone was eavesdropping. "What else do you know? Have any other dirt on me?"

I grinned at the chance to really freak him out.

"Jeff Moreau. Graduated flight school top of his class. Was often passed over though because of his affliction with Vrolik's Syndrome. Resulted from absence of gene therapy in the remote colony he was born in."

Although I probably should have used a little more restraint telling him his life story, I decided to continue as the face Joker was making was hilarious.

"After learning about the Normandy's first test run, you hijacked it by locking the original pilot in a shuttle. Would have been court martialed if not for a Turian general. Still has a father and sister back home. Has a fetish for-"

I didn't know where I was going with that last one but he stopped me before I could continue.

"Alright, alright, enough. Geez." He sat in his chair looking stunned. "Was me having brittle bones that obvious?"

"What? No, I wouldn't have ever guessed. I only knew that from your file," I lied.

"My file?! Oh my god...Do you know how paranoid you have to be to think every moment of your life was being watched? That there are people keeping tabs on everything you do? And then you actually discover you had been right all along?" He seemed to contemplate that his entire life might have been entertainment for some sick twisted pervert. Which was unfortunately true. "At least I know someone cares about me," he observed.

On that note, I thanked him for his time and turned back the way I came. It looked like Shepard planned to do some-

I shuddered at the thought.

-side quests before Therum. And ones I had never heard of before.

* * *

><p>Stepping out of the elevator, the storage area-slash-garage of the Normandy seemed to be bustling with activity. Garrus was on top of the Mako, looking hard at work messing with the mass accelerator mounted on it. To my left, Williams was hovering over the work bench taking a Lancer apart piece by piece. It was the first time I had seen her out of her armor since I met her. Closest to me was Wrex who was digging through what I assumed to be his locker. I decided to interrupt the one not hard at work.<p>

"Whatcha up to there Williams?" I asked looking over her shoulder.

"Depends on who wants to know. Alliance regs state that marines shouldn't talk with civvies while they're on duty."

"...you aren't on duty now are you?"

She turned and gave me a look that I determined said "Leave me alone" and "Fuck off". I decided to play though. I didn't need this bullshit.

"Look, we got off on the wrong foot back on Eden Prime. And I'm sorry. I have the utmost respect for what your unit did back there and I know I wouldn't be alive now if it wasn't for them. I meant no disrespect when I put on this uniform."

She seemed to take a moment to think over what I offered. My bullshitting had really gone up a notch after my first 'night' on the Normandy. Whether it was actually that talent window or just the placebo effect of thinking it worked, I had gotten much better at lying on the fly. Almost like I had extra time to rehearse lines in my head before I said them. She turned around to fully face me.

"If you really respect those marines, you'd take off that uniform."

I would have been glad to take it off right then and there...if it wasn't the only thing that had kept me alive over the past couple of days.

"I promise the first chance I get to buy new armor, I will Chief."

That finally seemed to win her over.

"...You can just call me Ashley."

"How bout Ash?" I asked jokingly.

"How bout no."

_I'll take what I can get._

"Well then...let's start over. Nice to meet you Ashley," I said outstretching my hand. She looked at it and for a second I thought she wasn't going to shake it. But her hesitation had only been for a moment. She shook it.

Then the marine looked around awkwardly for a second before talking. "Hey...I don't think I ever said thanks for telling me about Samesh. I would have no idea he was at the Embassies if you hadn't told us. Helping him get Nirali back...it...I...it really helped a lot to see her given a proper send off."

I looked her in the eyes. "You don't need to thank me. I just pointed you his way."

"Still," she said. "Thanks." It was the first time she looked at me without a hint of mistrust. I decided to steer the conversation clear from her dead squad.

"You reassembling that rifle?"

"Oh this?" she said turning around and giving the gun a good thump on the table. "Just giving the old thing a tune-up. Saw a lot of action over the past couple of days. I'll probably just end up checking the coil and ammunition block, might add a dampener mod to it too."

I feigned interest as she went off on a tangent about Alliance standard military gear. I learned while Hahne-Kedar supplied a majority of the arms used by marines in the Alliance, the stock they received was only on par with the average firearm. If you wanted to some quality equipment, you should get products made by companies like Rosenkov Materials and Kassa Fabrication. They might cost you a pretty penny but was worth it in the long run.

I also learned that Ashley could really talk your ear off. I didn't even notice Shepard had entered the garage until she yelled across it. "Williams! Wrex! You're coming with us!"

I turned around to see Shepard, Kaidan, and the two Alliance marines Emerson and Fredericks approaching the Mako.

"Looks like it's time for me to split," she said with a grin, making a move for her locker.

Garrus hopped off the vehicle as the soldiers started getting in. Shepard made a rude gesture to him to move aside. Then I made eye contact with her as she was about to board the death trap herself. I began to approach her to see if I could tag along but she apparently already knew my question, nodding her head no. She disappeared within the vehicle.

A few minutes later, Wrex and Ashely were aboard the Mako too and a loud hissing could be heard as the ramp of the Normandy opened. Blinking, I missed the Mako rocketing out of the ship backwards and plummeting to the planet below. My heart sank a little bit.

I had just been left behind for our first assignment.

Thankfully, so was Garrus. I at least had him left for company while everyone was gone. And he seemed to share my sentiments.

"I"m pretty sure she had room for _at least_ one more. I'm getting the feeling she doesn't quite care for me," he confided.

"I have a feeling the sentiment doesn't just stop at you," I remarked.

"I'm getting the feeling its because I'm a Turian. Although I can understand why. A lot of Turians still harbor resentment toward Humans for what happened during the Relay 314 Incident too."

"I'm pretty sure she doesn't JUST hate Turians," I assured him.

He seemed to disagree. "I don't get the feeling the Commander is that way. Not with how she interacts with the others. She doesn't seem to have any grudge against Wrex or Tali."

He was right there. She hadn't argued against me for taking Tali along with us and practically welcomed Wrex with open arms. In her own special way.

"True," I conceded. "I'm sure then it's just because she doesn't know you. She'll come around eventually."

"Thanks," he said. "A lot of the Normandy's crew doesn't seem too partial to me either. The looks I've been getting..."

It was almost as funny as it was sad that racism still existed 100 years into future.

...or was it _speciesism?_

"I'm sure you'll grow on them once they all realize you're just a regular Joe too."

"Grow on them?" He seemed to be confused at the mention of Joe too.

_Doh. Stupid cultural barriers._

"Sorry, Human idiom. It basically means once they get to know you."

"Ah."

He inquired a little more about Human culture; how we addressed friends, greeted people informally, and the like. It was kind of fun being the representative of an entire race. I had to say I was surprised though with how curious he was.

"I wouldn't imagine you'd be the one asking me about all this," I said honestly after he had finally run out of questions.

"Oh? And why is that?"

"I thought they would teach you that kind of stuff at C-Sec. To help you deal with all the different races you meet and things," I replied eloquently.

"If it was to address multiple cultures with proper etiquette than yes. But informally off the clock? Not so much. I didn't have many Human friends back at C-Sec so I was just curious of how you interacted with your species interacted with their familiars...I was hoping that learning some of your customs would help me win over a couple of the ones giving me the cold shoulder."

I had to say, it was admirable to see how much he cared about making a good impression on all the racist-

_Or was it speciest?_

-crew on board. I decided to tell him that. He looked flattered.

"Well, back when I served on the Serrikan, my commanding officer used to hammer into us that each and every crew member should be able to trust one another with their lives. If they didn't, the mission you were on was most certainly doomed for failure." He paused staring off into space.

"Huh. So what did you do if you had two crew members who didn't get along? With how much it sounds your captain liked team work, I imagine he had to have had a few tricks to get people to play nice."

"Corinthus usually did it with violence."

The name sounded familiar.

" 'Let your talons do the talking' is something he always liked to say. A lot of Turian ships usually have training rooms for exercise combat sims and even full-contact sparring. So whenever two crewmen were at each other's throats, he would throw them in the ring to settle their differences. Both parties would settle their grudges amicably, and walk away with a new found respect for each other. He had apparently been doing this ever since the Relay Incident. And it seemed to work."

_Wait. This couldn't be..._

"I actually remember a night before one mission; we were about to hit a Batarian pirate squad, very risky. And this recon scout and I had been at each other for most of the trip. Nerves mostly. With a mission like that coming up, the Commander hinted we should get over our differences. Settle it in the ring. I was hesitant at first but she goaded me into it."

_No way..._

"She was a woman? I hope you took it easy on her," I mindlessly said, practically hanging on the edge of my seat waiting for the thing.

"Actually she and I were the top-rank hand-to-hand specialists on the ship. I had reach, but she had flexibility...it was brutal. My eye plate got cracked, and I'm pretty sure I knocked one of her fangs loose. After nine rounds of going at each other, the judge had to call it a draw. There were a lot of unhappy betters in the training room that day. We...ah...ended up holding a tiebreaker in her quarters. I had reach but she...she had flexibility."

_Aaaand there it is. Classic Vakarian._

A Turian grin crept across his face. "More than one way to resolve a grudge I guess."

I found myself grinning at the end of his story too.

"Going to try that with Shepard?"

That had the dude at a loss for words. He just kinda stood there with his mouth agape and mandibles slacked. Luckily for him, a familiar face was approaching us from engineering. Adams had just finished talking to her and was taking the elevator up. She spotted us just as he left.

"Garrus, Shield, did you not go planetside with Shepard?"

Garrus welcomed the distraction and wheeled around to face her. "Uh, No...there wasn't enough room for everyone. She ended up just choosing who she thought best for the mission."

"Who else did she take? I thought the Mako had room for eight?" the Quarian asked innocently.

_Eight?! Why the hell did only two squad mates at a time ever sit in it with you!?_

"It was her, the Lieutenant, and the three other Alliance marines. Oh and Wrex. The Krogan probably took half of the seats in that thing alone," Garrus speculated.

"What've you been up to this entire time Tali?" I inquired.

"Oh, just working with Engineer Adams on the drive core. Did you see how large it is? I can't believe they were able to fit it into a ship this small! I'm starting to see why you Humans have been so successful. I had no idea you had ships this advanced!"

"Well, the Normandy is special," I told her in place of a crewman that actually knew what they were talking about. "Prototype with revolutionary technology never seen before. I'm fairly certain a regular Alliance frigate would be less than impressive in comparison to a live ship of the Flotilla."

"I don't know about that," Tali replied.

"I have to say, I would love to see what that drive core on this thing can do in a fight," Garrus chimed in.

"From what Engineer Adams has told me, the Normandy is built for stealth, not combat," Tali relegated to him.

"But with the ship's advanced weaponry and the stealth drive adding a new tactical level to space combat as we know it, think of the possibilities! Surprise attacks, undetected flanking maneuvers..."

"If it comes to a fight, I'd prefer a flotilla ship. It's easier to trust what you know works. Some of our ships have been working for over several hundred years."

"Oh sure they're reliable but if you can't detect your enemy-"

_Well. Here I am just chillin' with the Fleet and Flotilla. And you know what. I'm actually glad I didn't go down. I'm sure this is way better than dealing with Shepard barking orders at me._

I sat back and listened as the two went passionately on about their hypothetical space battle and their own experiences aboard other spaceships.

* * *

><p>She was sitting in front of the Mako's wheel. The rest of the team had already exited the vehicle. But she had decided to stay in her seat. While their mission was successful, it had not been what she was expecting. Instead of Batarians, the holdout they sieged was a random assortment of alien mercenaries and thugs who just happened to be as sick in the head as the four-eyed freaks. The fact that some of them had even been Human infuriated her.<p>

_How the hell could they betray their own race? _

The head of the whole operation being Asari just puzzled her further. They were supposed to be the best the Galaxy offered, yet here one was replicating one of the most heinous crimes in the Milky Way. Shepard wasn't one to usually stereotype but she expected better from the race. She would have to report all this to Hackett. She rubbed her head as she got a migraine thinking about the report. She decided she would ask Kaidan to help compose it.

Getting over her post-mission reflection, she exited the vehicle, only to find Shield pop up before her.

"Hey Commander! How was the mission?"

She wasn't in the mood for his shit. She continued to walk toward the elevator.

"I'm assuming it went...well?"

She didn't respond.

"I'll take that as a yes. What did you guys find down there?"

She decided to finally indulge his conversation. "Oh? I thought you would've already found out from the Shadow Broker by now," she said sarcastically. The cheery disposition of the Broker's operative vanished.

"Look, if you didn't want to talk, you just had to say so."

"I don't want to talk."

Shepard continued to the elevator and pressed the button to take her up. Shield didn't follow her up. She turned around to make eye contact with him for a fraction of a second before the door sealed shut.

_Only a few more days..._

Once she exited the elevator, she headed up the stairs toward the Command Deck. She needed to consult with Pressly about the best route for travelling to the Sparta System. As much as she wanted Shield and Wrex off her ship, she had told Kaidan she would investigate the Admiral's missing marines first. She found the mystery of their disappearance concerning as well.

As she reached the top of the steps, she ran into Private Emerson.

"Oh Commander!" He saluted. "I just wanted to say again that it was an honor to work with you. Watching you do a number on those slavers was amazing. That'll teach them to think twice about doing that anywhere near Alliance Space."

She didn't have time to humor him.

"Emerson, I need you to write an additional mission report and turn it in to the Lieutenant. He should be updating the Admiral before we leave the system so I need it done in less than an hour."

He snapped to attention. "Of course ma'am!" He also added, "Thanks again for taking me on the mission," before running the rest of the way down the stairs.

He had done less than satisfactory on the planet's surface. He was only marginally better than Shield at shooting, and he completely forgot that he could return fire from cover. And Fredericks fared little better. They were both mediocre marines at best. She thought that guard detail on the Normandy had been beneath them but seeing them out on the field...

_If the Krogan does betray us on Therum, they'd be ripped apart._

Seeing Wrex barrel through five mercenaries in a row without even losing his shields reinforced that notion. They could handle Shield but the Krogan Wrex would be a different story.

_And what are my other options..._

Servicemen Tanaka and Felawa had severely low technical scores for their assignment. She suspected they had only gotten posts aboard the ship due to familial connections. She had reduced them to simply high-paid sentries, watching for any suspicious activity happening on the ship. She had thought Emerson and Fredericks would have at least had the potential to join the ground team but they had shown otherwise once they had actually stepped on the field today.

The only real good news from the mission was that the Gunnery Chief really _could_ hold her own. Fist's bar was filled with thugs who barely knew the right side of their guns. The criminals in the base they sieged were significantly more dangerous. Yet the Chief had still fought commendably. Williams definitely deserved a spot aboard the vessel.

She tapped Pressly on the shoulder as he was apparently too preoccupied in whatever he was working on to notice her.

_I'll have to tell Williams later._

Navigator Pressly had a navigation route planned to the Sparta System by the time she had finished asking. At least their Chief Navigator had earned his post. He and Shepard sent the course immediately to Joker, and the pilot assured them they'd be there within the next couple of days.

_That would be more than enough time to take stock of our current supplies._

She hadn't had time to do so with how quickly they had reached their first assignment. She left the two on the bridge and headed back downstairs to the mess hall. Apparently Anderson had left her a gift before the ship was taken from his command too.

"Hey Commander, got a sec?"

She looked up from her personal locker to Lieutenant Adams.

"What do you need?"

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

**Oh Shephard, thinking Wrex and Shield are working together in a conspiracy when they haven't even talked to each other yet! While we're on the topic of miscellaneous thoughts, I was imagining this (31. media. tumblr dot comm / tumblr _ m1qheqqvuf1qd33gj. jpg) reaction for Garrus when asked if he was going to try popping his heat sink with Shephard. Yeah yeah you can't actually click the link but if you're curious, hit it up :] **

**Its Hilarious. [UPDATE: Looks like the link to the image has been taken down. I wish I had saved it. It was a picture of Quentius, and he had the silliest face ever. Sorry you missed it :( ]**

**Also, thanks to alienvx0 for pointing out the glaring mistake. I've made the fix so the Commander's name now reads 'Shepard' instead of 'Shefard'. ...Embarrassing.**

**On another note, the story's now (_practically)_ a Month old! Milestone achieved! Though 11 chapters released in a month seems to me like I didn't write that much, it_ almost_ amounts to about three days per chapter. Which is decent. I just wanted to give a heads-up though after heading back to school, and having homework, and projects, and stuff; I'll probably be updating much less frequently. It doesn't help my free time to write that I also just got DA:I and that I'm also a lazy fuck. Give a week tops until the next chapter. Definitely going to finish though, because I'll be damned if don't see this thang through.**

**In the Next Chapter: Lava. Heatsinks. Geth. I didn't ask for any of this. My First Assignment!**

**Tune in next time to Act 1 of Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


	11. Geth, Geth, and Guess what, Geth

_**(**Mental wounds, Not Heaaaaling_

_Life's a bitter shaaaaame_

_I'm goin' off the rails on the Crazy Train!_

_Dun dun dun dun dun dun_

_I'm going off the raaaaails on the Crazy Traaaain!_

_*wicked guitar solo***)**_

The Omni-tool for Dummies Handbook was probably the best thing that's happened to me since I woke up on Eden Prime.

_**(**I listened to preachers_

_I've listened to fooools**)**_

When Shepard didn't pick me again for the mission on Edolus _I_ discovered, that's what I spent most of the day messing around on.

_**(**I've watched all the dropouts**)**_

The first thing I did was surf the Extranet for any info on Shepard to see what her history was. Which just resulted in a gazillion news articles on her recent appointment as Humanity's first Spectre. Not exactly helpful.

_**(**Who make their own ruuuuules**)**_

I tried searching for what I could find on Wrex, Anderson and several others of the Normandy's crew on the Extranet too but I couldn't find what I wanted. Apparently, searching for specific individuals of little note in a Galaxy of Trillions didn't get you many results, go figure.

_**(**One person conditioned_

_To rule and controool**)**_

After THAT, I decided to say "fuck it" and mess around. I thought it would be fun to download one of the many free films floating around, settling on the first one I was familiar with. I found disappointingly that Blasto 1 was complete shit. Five hours long, horrible acting, and having the worst narrative I have ever goddamn seen, I was totally confused with how the cinematography of the future had become so awful.

_I guess the longer lifespans of aliens explained its length but..._

_**(**The media sells it_

_And you live the rooooole**)**_

At my wits end, I decided to see if I could at least find some decent music to download. Realizing all the top hits in the 22nd century was Techno with no lyrics, I almost broke down and cried. Only on a whim did I search for songs from Earth's 20th Century, which actually found me a surprising amount. Settling for what I saw and could actually tolerate, I was now listening to Ozzy as he rocked out in my earpiece.

_**(**Mental wounds still screaaaaming**)**_

I felt weightless as the Mako propulsed itself into the air.

_**(**Driving me insaaaane_

_I'm going off the rails on the Crazy Traaaain**)**_

_Speaking of crazy..._

Shepard's erratic driving was causing me a lot of discomfort. It wasn't her fault specifically, as from what I could see she was driving relatively well. More or less. It was just that with every sharp turn, every pothole we hit, every time we shot seven feet into the air to avoid an Armature's energy pulse, my head would slam against the metal wall behind it.

_**(**I'm going off the rails on the Crazy Traaaaaain_

_*wicked chord***)**_

"OW"

Naturally, my head snapped back against the Mako's cold steel again as it slammed back onto the ground. I saw Wrex's mouth curve in a grin across from me. I turned off the song when he started to open it.

"-umans are so fragile. If you had a headplate like Krogans do, you wouldn't get head trauma so easily."

_Yeah, your headplate is totally the reason why you're not hurting. Not the human sized hump cushioning it._

"Or a helmet," Kaidan said next to him. "You should've got one before we left."

"You guys had spare helmets?!"

"...I thought the Commander told you we had some equipment for you during your briefing."

"Must have slipped my mind," Shepard said from the front.

_Shepard, you're the fucking worst._

She could've actually killed me. All I had on me was the armor and pistol I woke up with on Eden Prime. If I had an assault rifle, grenades, or hell, even that helmet, I would feel a LOT better about facing the army of Geth between us and the dig site. The Mako became silent again.

Across from me, Wrex looked bored, not getting to man the turret like he had wanted. Kaidan was squeezed to his right with Emerson to his left. Both marines looked down at the floor as I imagined they were mentally preparing themselves for the fight ahead. Next to me, Fredericks sat to my right and Tali my left. Besides Fredericks and Kaidan was the head of the vehicle where Shepard was driving and Ashley manned the guns. Even with the gunfire from outside, the Mako was too quiet for my taste as we continued on our way to T'soni.

* * *

><p><strong>Hours earlier...<strong>

"Hey Shield!" I turned around to find a marine in front of me. "Shepard wants you down in the garage!"

"Uh...Why?"

"I don't know. If I were you though, I'd get down there as soon as possible. The Commander doesn't like to be kept waiting."

I knew that all too well.

As I took the elevator down, I thought of what I would say. After Shepard's team had discovered the missing marines and taken down the false distress signal, I had gotten pretty upset. I hadn't said anything to her but at the rate we were going, I realized I would never even see the inside of the Mako by Ilos. Although I'll admit not fighting the Thresher Maw was slightly comforting, I was dead set on being a part of the action. That's why I was fucking here.

_Uh, You didn't decide to be HERE._

_Shut up. You know that's not what I meant._

While I didn't choose to wake up in Universe of Mass Effect, I did 'choose' to be on the Normandy. To help make a difference. Prevent the unfortunate circumstances that would arise on Shepard's travels from happening. I couldn't do that though if I was never in any of them.

As I exited the elevator, I spotted her standing next to the Mako talking to Vakarian. I steeled myself as I approached. I still didn't know what I planned to say or how I would convince her but I was damned if I wasn't at least going on one Priority Mission by the end of this journey.

"Get what you need. We're arriving at Therum in a couple hours."

"What." I blinked a couple times.

"You. Therum. Next. Mission. Or is that a problem?" Shepard replied harshly.

"Oh?...NO! Not at all!" I spat out.

"Alright then," she said grimacing while turning back to Garrus.

I stood there for a second in shock.

_Well...alright then. Nice work._

* * *

><p><strong>Present...<strong>

All eight of us exited the vehicle once we had arrived at the quarry's entrance.

"Looks like we're gonna have to go on foot," Ashley remarked as we climbed out.

"Keep your eyes open," Shepard ordered as we all entered the canyon single file.

Just when we started climbing up the hill, three Geth popped up at the top. Before Emerson could scream "GETH!" they had all been dropped by the seasoned veterans. I trembled in the back.

_I'm not ready for this._

The closest I've ever been to a shootout was a paint ball fight. The closest you can get to the paralyzing fear of combat knowing that around any corner or from any direction you could get pelted with a million tiny balls that stung like shit. Technically there had been the fire fights on Eden Prime and in the Ward Alley but I had hid for most of both. We were actually walking onto a battle field with nowhere to hide this time.

Reaching the top of the slope, our force turned the corner to find a valley littered with what seemed to be waist high stone walls. A shot rang past my neck from the watch tower on the other side of the gulch.

"Sniper's down!" Ashely shouted.

I realized she was the one who had taken the shot. Not the Geth. I was about to remark to her she had been a little close before the Geth started swarming into the valley from the other side.

"TAKE COVER!" Shepard yelled barreling down the slope. I was the last to follow her instruction as a hail of gunfire fell upon our position. Once at the bottom, I found the nearest waist high natural formations taken by Emerson and Tali. Running past their positions, I found the next three taken by Wrex, Kaidan and Fredericks. I maneuvered around them to find Shepard and Ashely at the only other two not occupied by Geth. I just stood there exposed in the middle of the battle field wondering what I should do.

_Lie on the ground? That would be a li-_

"TAKE COVER SHIELD!" Kaidan yelled from behind as blast of energy shot by me.

I quickly made eye contact with the Geth that had done so and put a slug between its eye.

"Woah, nice one!" I heard from Emerson.

I almost turned around to smugly say thanks before my shield got ripped to shreds by three more. Ashley tackled me to the ground and dragged me back to her cover.

"What the FUCK are you doing?" she yelled at me over the gun fire. Shepard threw a biotic field from her hand and Wrex advanced to the recently vacated cover ahead of us. My shield beeped before coming back online.

Getting to my knees, I shrugged my shoulders at her and ran out after the Krogan. "SHIELD!" I could barely hear her shout after me. The sound of the fire fight was deafening, as at least 18 guns blasted away at each other in the valley.

"Hey Wrex." I said saddling up next to him. I found myself laughing as I said it. I had no idea why. I decided it was just a manic attack from almost being killed. He eyed me like I was insane.

"Now's not th-"

"See ya Wrex!" I said rolling back out of cover to the right.

I found a Geth standing several feet away from where I found myself. I squeezed the trigger of my Predator at least 3 times before it even had a chance to raise its gun. Even though its body was hissing like a rattlesnake, it was still standing.

Then something popped out of my gun and I dropped it in surprise.

Luckily, the Geth was only able to fire a single shot at my shoulder before it was hit by someone.

_...Oh. Fuck me._

My gun looked like a Hahne-Kedar issued Kessler. But it was bigger. And when Ashely's wasn't looking, I had compared it to hers. They were both still about the same weight. I thought it might have been a striker or one of the other generic pistol models back in the first game but referred to it as a Predator nonetheless. But surprise surprise, it actually was an M-3 Predator. As in, the gun from ME2. The guns that actually needed ammo. I cursed my fucking luck.

So there I was. Biotics, tech powers, and rockets flew across the battlefield. Only I was kneeling down on far right side of the canyon's battlefield, being ignored by the Geth and my squad.

_Guess I'll just have to take his-_

The Geth's pulse rifle ahead of me suddenly sparked and started smoking.

_Of course._

The Normandy's fire team was slowly making progress forward but the rate of fire the Geth were keeping up was preventing them from really making any headway.

_How are they holding them back? There's not even that many G-_

Then it hit me. A Eureka! moment. I crawled over to the Geth I 'killed' and started searching it. I found what I was looking for attached to its back. I picked it up and fumbled with my gun for a while before it clicked in.

_Fuck YEAH._

I slowly crept back into the shadow of the cliff side as the battle raged on in the gulf's center. Wrex had tried to charge the Geth line twice but was stopped by a missile both times. The other marines were pinned, unable to return fire with the amount of heat coming down on them.

As I reached the far corner of the battle field, I saw that a line of 6 Geth troopers were the only thing left separating them from the other side. They had those portable plasma shields placed in front of them which prevented any of the team's abilities from effectively being used against them. Shepard was still flinging as many mass effect fields at them as she could regardless.

I jumped as Joker spoke up over my radio.

"Shepard, the Geth ship just turned back around and is headed your way!"

_Shit._

If we were tied down any longer, that ship could drop reinforcements right on top of us. Or better yet, just blast us to smithereens. Now was the time to throw caution to the wind.

_God, Buddha, Satan, give me strength._

I harnessed my inner Rambo and let out a war cry as I leapt from the shadows squeezing the trigger of my gun as quickly as I could. My arms didn't fling back with the recoil like the last few times.

I ended up shooting two Geth dead set in their chests. The third I hit in the head.

The remaining three turned to me I imagine in surprise. Big mistake. Seeing their first opportunity, Wrex and Shepard charged their position again while the rest laid down suppressing fire for the first time since they had gotten pinned. A rocket trooper I hadn't seen above me was sniped by Williams. And it was over.

I quickly bent over and started collecting the Geth's thermal clips before Shepard and the rest got to my position. I didn't want their questions about what I was looking for and why I needed them.

"How the hell did you get over there?!" Ashley said as the last of the fire team reached me.

Luckily I had already finished looting the Geth's bodies. I just shrugged my shoulders at her. She rolled her eyes and followed Shepard and Wrex who had already begun scaling the hill up to the other side.

"Not bad," Fredericks remarked walking by me. Emerson and Kaidan also gave me nods of approval as they passed. I brought up the rear with Tali who I thought also seemed a little shell shocked.

"You okay?" I asked her concerned. She almost jumped, seeming surprised that I was right next to her.

"Ah...yes. I'm fine. I just...I've never seen so many Geth before. Let alone fight that many."

I wish I could say I was fine. I literally thought I was going to have a heart attack. My heart was still beating a mile a minute and my suit felt like a swamp. Wet and humid.

_I really need a shower._

"Watch yourself. I'm sure there's more out here," I decided to advise her looking ahead to the large refinery ahead of us.

I noticed Shepard had already made her way in and was practically half way to the mine's entrance.

_Shepard-what-you-fuck-The fucking colossus._

"SHEPARD TAKE COVER!"

At the sound of my voice, I could see Shepard wheel around to glare at me. Probably mad I had tried to give her an order. She was distracted though as a laser hit her back and knocked her to her hands and knees. The Geth leaper didn't get far as it was subsequently shot down by Kaidan. It was kinda the least of our worries though as the Geth dropship Joker mentioned was suddenly humming over us.

"TAKE DEFENSIVE POSITIONS!" I could hear Shepard yell as she rolled behind a crate to her right. It was right in time too because the Geth armature landed with a loud clunk a couple yards from where she had just been.

Tali and I hauled ass to the nearest cover at the entrance as a giant plasma burst sailed over our heads.

"Holy SHIT!" I heard Emerson yell over the added fire of Geth shock troopers also being dropped off.

"I've killed bigger things than this," I heard Wrex bellow with the unmistakable sound of a shot gun ringing through the air shortly after. Tali leaned out to send a sabotage at what I assumed to be a Geth and I decided to lean out my side to see what I could do too. On the left side of the crate though, all I could see was a long corridor between the walls of whatever the structure above us was, hidden from the Geth. I decided to leave cover and walk into it.

I froze as I heard a scream and yelling from the other side of the wall. I decided to sprint the rest of the way to the end of the corridor and found myself coming out on the other side of the site, behind the Colossus.

"Alenko, Tali, I need overloads NOW!"

Shepard's orders rang clearly in my ear. The radio continued to transmit the team's back and forth.

"That thing's electronic defenses are too complex for our omni-tools Shepard! Our tech attacks won't cut it!" Kaidan yelled back to her.

Peering around the structure's column, I could only see the haunches of the the Colossus.

"Fredericks is bleeding out bad Commander!" I heard Ashely yell.

Shepard cursed over the radio. I decided to report in.

"Shepard, I'm behind the Colossus. I can try to distract it."

She paused before responding.

"Try to bring its attention on you. Fall back if you get it!"

"Will do," I responded opening fire on the black tubing underneath the Colossus' silver shell.

I couldn't see its front and therefore, I couldn't see when it turned its head to launch a ball of plasma at me. The explosion sent me flying back and sounded off the alarm that my kinetic barriers were down.

"Shield!"

I tried to respond but it felt like I had something caught in my throat. I laid there on the ground heaving. My eyes widened as panic gripped me.

_Please don't fucking tell me my rib's fractured again._

"Hey...what's it doing!?" I heard Wrex shout over the noise of the fire fight.

I finally found my breath again and managed roll onto my stomach. I came to a slow crawl back out to see what he was talking about. As soon as I peeked back around the refinery's column, I saw what he meant. I briefed them on the thing.

"It's a repair protocol. Once one of those things take enough damage they curl up and start to repair themselves."

"WHAT?! How are we supposed to destroy this thing then!?" I heard Ashley yell on the radio.

I started firing my gun at it again to give her a hint. I only fired two shots though before I saw Wrex leaping onto the back of its left leg and begin to climb the thing.

_What the fuck._

"WREX!" I heard the Commander yell over the radio.

"This is how it's done boys and girls!" Wrex shouted as he got onto its back and waltzed over to the Colossus' neck joint.

Just before he pulled his trigger it popped right back up, almost flinging Wrex clear off it.

"Distract it! Make sure to watch your shots!" Shepard barked starting the fire fight again.

I decided to oblige albeit using my ammo sparingly, only firing off a shot every now and then. You didn't come by Thermal clips in 2183 easily. Wrex had been able to hang on and was now on its neck, shimmying up it. Halfway up, he pulled out his shot gun and blasted the Geth's turret to kingdom come. While making it easier to return fire for the rest of us, it had also alerted the thing to the Krogan on it. I guess you could describe what it started to do now as shaking, trying to throw the Krogan off. I left my cover with the danger of the turret gone and fully open fired on it along with the others. Wrex kept climbing disregarding the Colossus' tantrum and soon found himself at the top of its head.

"It's no Thresher Maw but I'm sure this will kill it all the same," he said over the radio blasting what I thought to be a carnage through its head.

It suddenly started to sputter and its legs gave out, collapsing to the ground. Wrex was flung several feet away once its head hit the ground following suit. Lucky for him too as the whole thing went up in a giant blue ball of flames shortly after.

"God damn," Ashley remarked exiting cover.

Shepard radioed the Normandy.

"Joker, ready the med bay, we have two wounded. Get down here ASAP!"

"Yes ma'am!" Joker responded over the radio.

I walked over the group that had formed underneath one of the structure's walkways. Getting close, I saw the injured marines. Fredericks' armor was melted away at the side and had a large amount of blood flowing from it. Kaidan was trying to apply medi-gel to stop it. Beside him, Emerson was being attended to by Tali and Ashley, having a couple bullet holes along his right shoulder and arm.

Shepard glanced at me as I passed her.

* * *

><p>Things couldn't have gone worse.<p>

A good part of her team had been taken out of the mission before they had even found T'Soni and now she learned that Shield's ineptitude had been a façade as well.

Not only was he able to sneak by the Geth but dispatched a good amount of them without effort too. All clean shots. Head and body. He seemed to be barely able to handle the recoil of his gun back on Eden Prime but now apparently had marksmanship on par with Kaidan. He had faked his ineptitude all along, playing them. With the Krogan's feat too, she wasn't sure if they could take them on.

She ended her conversation with Chakwas and told Vakarian to follow her. Wrex, Shield, Williams, and Kaidan were waiting at the bottom of the ramp.

"Commander, didn't Tali come down with you?" the Turian said beside her looking around.

"She's examining some of the Geth we shot. We're hoping she can find some more information on Saren and his whereabouts."

She turned to the rest.

"No doubt some Geth already entered the ruins, keep your eyes open and guns out."

She ordered the group into the mine's tunnel. She narrowed her eyes and nodded to Williams and Kaidan as they passed her. They nodded back. Shepard had briefed the four marines before they came planet side to watch Shield and Wrex, telling them of her suspicions. Only Kaidan had openly expressed his disagreement but told her regardless that he would keep an eye out. She entered the mine shaft last.

_And why were they even suspected of anything in the first place?_

Because both admitted they worked for the Shadow Broker. And the Shadow Broker had made deals with Saren. Fist was a prime example of this. Though Fist's OSD only contained information on his illicit activities, she was still surer than ever that the two were going to double-cross them. And she planned for them to do it here instead of more critical mission.

_But their actions depicted the opposite._

If Shield hadn't flanked the Geth back in the quarry, they would've have pinned until the drop ship arrived. Then the Geth artillery would have been dropped right on the top of the hill. None of them would've survived. And then Wrex had stupidly risked his life to take it down at the dig site moments ago too.

He was a Krogan though, they were blood thirsty and stupid. And Shield had still lied on multiple occasions. He did it when they first found him, and apparently he had lied about his abilities with a gun too. He had to have had training somewhere.

She saw Geth ahead but could do little from the back of the single file line. Wrex and Garrus who were taking point killed them though with little effort and the group continued down the tunnel.

_Shield or Wrex most likely warned the Doctor that we were coming for her and set up a trap. There they'll turn on us and we'll most likely be ambushed too. _

She had Williams and Alenko prepared for the scenario but Vakarian wasn't.

_Would they be enough for Wrex, Shield and however many Geth there were?_

They had to be.

Several Geth drones rose from below the scaffold they were on but they were quickly taken care of by the fire team. Actually surveying her environment for the first time, she noticed there was a faint blue light coming from ahead. As they all gathered in front of the elevator that would take them down, she examined the light's source. It came from some kind of concave in the wall, a Prothean construct. The glow reminded her of the Prothean beacon and the vision quickly flit through her mind, causing her to flinch.

"Never visited a Prothean Ruin before," Vakarian said breaking the silence. "...besides the Citadel."

"Sterile white. Protheans sure built things homey," the Krogan added moments later.

As Wrex, Vakarian and Shield were the first to pile into the elevator, the Broker's operative seemed to flinch. She hadn't known why until she could tell from below that the elevator had 'malfunctioned'.

_A trap meant for us._

He asked them how they were going to get down but she didn't respond as she carefully jumped onto and slid down the elevator cable after them. She had her hand on her holstered weapon as she jumped onto the scaffold. Wrex and Vakarian had already started to continue down it. Shield eyed her as she walked past him.

_They're going to act any second._

She slowly took stock of their surroundings. The walkway they were on was narrow, extremely advantageous to the Krogan since it was such close quarters. He would be able to blow through them easily. Unless she used her biotics to stagger him. Then Kaidan could overload his shields. Then he would just be an over-sized target. Below them though was a cavern that could easily hide any number of Geth. They would certainly complicate things. She braced herself.

_This was it..._

A foreign voice caused her to jump.

"Uh...hello? Could somebody help me?...Please?"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**If you weren't familiar the song in the beginning is Crazy Train by Ozzy Ozbourne (1:07). Not exactly my favorite song but certainly a fun one that I would choose if I had to pick between it and Jazz from the 1920's. Ew.**

**I probably could have got a lot more done this week too if it wasn't for Dragon Age, and its ridiculous segues! I wish it would at least ease me into its plot points! Anyways...**

**In the Next Chapter: Asari, and Krogan, and Prothean visions, Oh my! The Throwdown on Therum!**

**Tune in next time for Act 1 of Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


	12. The Taxing Thrashing on Therum

Shepard had taken two steps past me before we heard Liara speak, and the women jumped in surprise whipping out her pistol.

"Woah! I'm pretty sure that's just Dr. T'Soni," I said in terror behind her.

She turned around and gave me the dirtiest look I've ever seen in my life before hopping down to the level below. I sighed and after waiting for a couple seconds, followed her down to the platform where we would meet Liara.

"Uh...Hi there." we found Vakarian saying, trying to start a conversation with the Asari.

"Hello? Can you hear me out there? I am trapped, I need help!" she shouted back at him.

"Quit Shouting! This place is full of Geth!" Shepard snapped at the both of them walking up. She turned to Wrex and where he was staring, at the empty cavern.

"Sorry, I am a little-Look. My name is Dr. Liara T'Soni. I am an archaeologist."

I turned back to look at her. Actually looking at it, I found the bright blue Prothean force field really distorted your perception of her. I couldn't see Liara at all. And if I hadn't known any better, I would've thought the barrier was hiding a Hanar on the other side.

"This thing I am in is a Prothean security device. I cannot move so I need you to get me out of it all right?"

"Quit your posturing, we know who you are. How did you end up in there?" Shepard questioned turning back around.

"I was exploring the ruins when the Geth showed up, so I hid in here. Can you believe that? Geth! Beyond the Veil!"

"Shocking I'm sure," I butted in.

"Wha-How many of you are there?"

Shepard answered before anyone else could tell her. "Doesn't matter. And just give me the short version."

"...Well, I came into this chamber to activate the barrier hoping it would keep the Geth out. Only I think I hit something I wasn't supposed to. After they left, I found myself trapped. You must get me out. Please!"

As the two conversed, I turned around towards the cavern below. Surveying the cavern floor littered with light fixtures and knocked over crates, I saw what I was looking for. I almost mistook the giant laser for a large boulder. It was perched in the middle of all the debris. Finding what I wanted and done admiring the view, I looked left to find Ashley observing me out of the corner of her eye.

_Uh..._

I jerked my head away and conspicuously felt my face to see if there might be something on it.

"It seems to me you shouldn't have been messing with things you didn't understand," Shepard replied callously behind me.

Not finding anything too unusual on my countenance, I turned back to the Gossip Girls.

"I wasn't going to let the Geth just capture me! Besides, I know how it works! Mostly."

"Uh-huh," Kaidan said skeptical.

"I do! There is a control in here that should deactivate this thing. You'll just have to find some way past this barrier curtain."

"The control that turns off the impenetrable barrier is _inside_ the impenetrable barrier?" Ashley asked in disbelief.

"Yes, that's the tricky part. The defenses cannot be shut off from the outside. I don't know how you'll get in here-"

"We'll find a way," Shepard cut her off.

Then Wrex got the ball rolling again.

"Looks like we have visitors!" he said jumping down to the cavern below.

Shepard whipped around seeing his descent and then turned to me. I shrugged and made a beeline after Ashley and Kaidan down the ramp.

_Here we go._

"I'll cover you!" Garrus shouted as we descended.

The Geth didn't give us as nearly as much trouble as the ones above ground. As spread out as they were, they weren't putting up much resistance. Not that I really knew though as my attention was more focused on the giant laser.

_Don't need to wait for Shepard fumbling around wondering what to do..._

I clicked a couple buttons on its console and it lit up. Four buttons came up on the screen.

_Well...at least THIS is like the game._

I clacked away at the buttons until stumbling upon the right combination on the fourth try.

_Jackpot!_

As it started lighting up, Shepard seemed to have noticed my shenanigans.

"Shield! What are you-"

Her voice was subsequently drowned out as the laser started to sputter on, which now attracted the attention of the rest of the team. I glanced over my shoulder to reply to her. I had to yell though for my voice to be audible.

"Thought this would be our ticket i-"

The thing let out a giant roar as it fired. I cringed at the noise and looked back to find a stream of what seemed to be molten lava shooting out of it. As soon as the beam made contact with the cavern wall, a large explosion erupted from it, sending out huge amounts of dust with gale force winds. I was blinded by the sudden onslaught of debris. The laser continued like this for a good amount of seconds before letting out a whine and powering down. I was still gagging from the dust hanging in the air well after it had stopped.

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO!?" Shepard yelled somewhere behind me. The density of the dust clouds made it really hard to tell where_ anything_ was. I could barely see my feet on ground.

"I made an entrance!" I shouted back while stumbling to where I thought my handiwork was. I didn't realize the laser formed a hole in the ground. A second after I had responded to Shepard I fell into the pit and hit the ground below me with a solid thud. By the time I got myself to my feet, Shepard and Kaidan were already hopping down. After looking around at my success, she just shot a glare at me. Kaidan continued to a Prothean computer ahead of us.

"Wrex, Ashley, meet us back at the barrier," she shouted back towards the hole.

"Roger that Commander!" Ashley replied back from the top.

As the platform began to rise, a silly grin plastered my face. Shepard was noticeably annoyed by my smile, so much so that she was actually gripping her gun pretttty tight. I couldn't give a damn though with how giddy I was. We had almost completed our first mission without any hitches! Drove through rivers of lava, busted down the Geth gatehouses with ease, and all of us made it past the armature alive. Fredericks and Emerson had been wounded but from the way Chakwas was talking they didn't seem to have any life-threatening conditions. Slap some medi-gel on them and they would be fine. I would have to be pretty morose to not be elated with getting off this rock alive. The elevator gave one final lurch as it stopped behind T'Soni's chamber. While Kaidan and Shepard took a gander at the Asari levitating before us, I made a beeline straight for the Prothean prison's control panel.

"How...how did you get in here? I didn't think there was any way past the barrier!"

"You're welcome" I said teasingly, continuing my walk up to the console. It lit up like a Christmas tree once my feet were planted in front of it. I bit my lip at the sight.

_Uuuuhhhhh...which one?_

The holographic display had a dozen different buttons. Or what looked like some. There was a circular ring comprised of four rhomboids and a bunch of various shapes and button sizes around them. I started sweating. I closed one eye timidly tapping the bright yellow button in the middle of it all.

_IIIIIII should have let Kaidan do this._

I breathed a sigh of relief as I heard an "OOf!" behind me.

_Hahaaa. Marauder Shield, you son of a bitch. You did it again._

"Doctor, any idea how we get out of this place?" Kaidan asked.

"I'm guessing the way we came in is out of the option?" Wrex cut in walking past the now defunct barrier with Ashley and Garrus.

I turned around to face our newest guest and I admit my jaw dropped a little. Despite the finger-like tendrils coming out the back of her head and blue tint of her scaly skin, the girl had it goin' on.

_I mean she's cute and all but-_

"There is an elevator at the back in the center of the tower. At least, I think it's an elevator."

"...did you actually even study anything here," Ashley rudely remarked.

"It should take us up! I'm sure of it. Come on!"

Once we were all situated on it, I let Kaidan take the reins this time. He tapped a few buttons on the tower's console and with a groan and a KCHUNK, it started moving.

"I-I still cannot believe all this. Why would the Geth come after me?"

"Good question Doctor. It's probably because they were sent here to retrieve Benezia's daughter."

"Wh-what? What does this have to do with my mother?" Liara innocently sputtered.

"The Geth are working with a Turian named Saren. And your mother is helping them. They're after something called the Conduit. As an expert on Protheans, we thought he might contact you," Garrus said catching her up to speed. "Do you know anything about it?"

"The..Conduit? But I don't-" she paused mid-sentence like she had just been slapped by Shepard. "What? What do you mean my mother is helping the Ge-"

What I was pretty sure to be an earthquake interrupted her as it shook the foundation of the ruins.

An "Oh Fuck" escaped my mouth.

"What the hell was that," Ashley said whipping her head around.

"Shield's bright idea must've caused the ruins to become unstable!" Shepard said angrily, pointed her hand with the gun at me.

Her stabbing motions while speaking were also making me really nervous. The way Shepard was holding her gun you'd think she was about to put a slug in me.

"We have to hurry then! It seems that the whole place is caving in!" the Doctor said panicked.

Shepard started muttering angrily and brought a finger to her earpiece. "Joker! Get the Normandy prepped and ready for takeoff! Tali, finish what you're doing and get aboard!"

"Aye, aye Commander!" both replied in unison over the radio comm.

"Not much margin for error," Kaidan added looking at Shepard.

"If we die in here, I'llllll kill him," Wrex deadpanned behind us.

Several more seconds and we were at the top. The elevator indicated this by coming to a sudden stop, causing us all to lose our balance. Kaidan was the first to recover and indicate we had more trouble coming our way besides the coming cave-in.

"We've got company. Big company."

Looking up from where I lay, I saw a Krogan saunter into view with a squadron of Geth behind him from our only exit.

_I really need to plan ahead for these missions. I totally forgot about him._

The Krogan looked a sickly green and had a malicious smile on his leathery face as he stopped in front of us.

"Surrender. Or don't. That would be more fun."

Getting back up to our feet, Wrex was surprisingly the first one to respond to the Krogan's challenge.

"Tanok. I'm not surprised to see you working for Saren you son of a Varren," Wrex growled at him.

"HA! Wrex! Of all the people I'd have thought to find here, you would be the last. Have you fallen so low as to having to resort to having Humans for a Krantt?"

"You know each other?" Shepard said from behind me. I glanced back to find her already brandishing a shotgun.

"Unfortunately," Wrex said not breaking eye contact with Manok.

"I should say the same," the Krogan remarked.

_...what the hell is going on._

"Of course only you would oppose the salvation Saren offered all Krogan. The coward who killed his own kin in the Hollows. He who spat on the place of our anc -"

"YOU KNOW DAMN WELL IT WASN'T ME WHO SPIT ON THE ANCESTORS THAT DAY!" Wrex raged, shaking the room almost as much as the cave-in was. Apparently it was a touchy subject.

"Oh? Then how did he die that day then? I suppose he stabbed himself," Ranok remarked sarcastically.

_I don't know for SURE if I ever took Wrex to Therum but I know for a FACT that this conversation is not in the ga-_

The walls shook around us again and caused me to fall to my knee.

_Oh JESUS. _

I glanced up to find Wrex now holding his scimitar at Sanok's face.

_We're really living on borrowed time. A prayer c-_

I noticed my Omni-tool flash on over my hand.

_**(**Continuing Playtrack 21...Music by Artist Bon Jovi. Livin' On A Prayer. (C) 1986 The Island Def Jam Music Group.**)**_

_Wait wha-_

I blinked for a second and chaos broke out.

Wrex had attacked Kanok and now a massive amount of weapons fire broke out on the exposed lift.

_**(**Whoooooaaaa**)**_

The kinetic barrier around me immediately dropped.

_**(**We're Halfway theeeere**)**_

I jumped backwards and rolled behind the Prothean console out of the oncoming maelstrom.

**(**_Whooooaa_**)**

A Geth peeked around a column to my left.

_**(**Liiiiiivin' on a Prayer**)**_

I pulled the trigger of my gun at it. Then I made eye-contact with Liara who was taking cover with Kaidan behind the back-most pillar.

_**(**Take My Hand-**)**_

I jumped up and made a mad dash toward them. I felt a bullet fly through my shoulder.

_(-And we'll make it I sweeeear)_

The excruciating pain caused me to trip over myself onto the ground.

_FUUUC**K**._

_**(**Whooooooaaa**)**_

I lay there writhing on the ground and saw Shepard violently fly into a column several feet away and collapse to the floor.

_**(**LIIIVIN ON A PRAYEEER**)**_

_OH FUCK_.

I forced myself up and ran towards her, noticing that Lanok was doing the same. Only with his head down. Charging.

**(**_We've gotta hoooold on, to what we got-_**)**

_Wait. What happened to the other verses?_

I was already leaping off the ground as I thought it and slammed head on into Yanok.

**(**_It doesn't make a difference if we Make it or NOT._**)**

Slinging his arm back, he sent me careening back towards the center of platform. He staggered backwards with the action too and turned his eyes on me.

**(**_We've got each other_**)**

He raised his claymore.

_Shit-how do I-do I just-Adrenaline Rush-_

My vision widened and narrowed at the same time while everything turned sepia.

**(**_and_**)**

I saw the Krogan's fingers tightening around his gun. Only at an extremely slow rate.

_Woah._

_**(**that's**)**_

I raised my Predator toward his head plate.

**(**_a_**)**

His eyes widened with the speed of my draw.

_**(**lot**)**_

I pulled the trigger three times. He still hadn't pulled the one he had started.

**(**_foo_-**)**

Then steam started slowly streaming from my gun.

**(-**_oo_**-)**

The Krogan's bewildered face turned into a devilish grin.

_Roll away! Fo-_

**(**-_oorr Loooove_**)**

Out of nowhere Wrex hit him like a freight train and Panok's shot gun was sent flying out of his hands, shooting into the air.

_**(**And we'll give it a SHOT!**)**_

As I lay on the floor frozen, my vision returned to normal.

_**(**Whoooooooaaaaa**)**_

_Get up._

**(**_We're halfway theeeere_**)**

I obliged and rose to my feet. I saw Shepard doing the same while holding her head.

_**(**Whoooooa**)**_

Then Ashley came running toward us returning fire at the remaining Geth in front of the exit.

**(**_Liviiiiiing on a Prayer_**)**

I popped my thermal sink out and the next one in the magazine loaded.

**(**_Liiiiivin_**)**

I emptied as many rounds as I could at the Geth from where I was standing.

**(**_Oooooon_**)**

Garrus rolled out from where Kaidan and Liara were taking cover and got a headshot on the last Geth standing.

**(**_Aaaaaaaaaa_**)**

One of the giant metal columns collapsed onto our platform causing the whole thing to tilt.

_**(**Praaaaayeeeeer!**)**_

_**(***wicked guitar solo***)**_

"TIME TO GO!" Wrex yelled coming out from where he had tackled Zanok.

"Song off Please" I cried as I ran back out of the room after everyone. Boulders and stalactites were falling like rain drops. The whole cavern was coming down around us.

"I don't think we're going to make it!" Ashley shouted sprinting ahead of me, dodging the falling rubble.

"Run Faster!" Wrex shouted back, barreling ahead of us all.

As the caboose of our escape train, I was the only one who noticed Shepard was not running at her usual speed. Ashely overtook her as we got to the floor of the tunnel's entrance. I realized Shepard was still out of it from getting thrashed by the Krogan. My eyes widened further than they already were as I spotted a boulder now falling where the teetering Commander was.

_OH GOD-_

I kicked myself into overdrive. I charged towards her and gave a mighty leap, simultaneously pulling my legs back. Then orienting my legs to face her, I launched them as hard as I could at Shepard's back which sent her flying forward. I landed unceremoniously back on the ground, barely retracting my extremities in time to avoid being crushed by the falling rock.

Shepard got up first and whipped around to me in fury. When the realization hit I had just saved her life though, her face showed...a little less of it. While she just stood there, I quickly got up and hurtled the debris between us, simply saying "JESUS CHRIST RUN!" as I flew by.

I had never sprinted so hard in my life as I ran down the final stretch of the cave.

Outside of the ruins, I could see our ticket out. The Normandy's ramp was already lowered for us but now had a considerable distance from the mine's scaffolding, having drifted too far away for us to simply walk onto.

Exiting the mine shaft, I leaped like a graceful gazelle onto it. I personally believe I probably made an Olympic record with how much distance I cleared. Shepard did the same behind me except with not as much style. Once we were on the Normandy, Kaidan yelled "Now!" into his radio and the Normandy lurched forward. I stumbled backwards on my butt.

It felt like an elephant was sitting on my chest, lungs about to burst. Looking into the garage though, I saw that everyone else had made it back safe and sound. Ashley was slapping Kaidan on the back who was doubled over in exhaustion; Liara was holding her hands over her chest looking like she was about to keel over and die; and Tali and Wrex were supporting Garrus as he had apparently taken some injuries in the skirmish.

_Well. At least it looks like we all made it._

I let out a nervous laugh with how close we had come to death and turned to my side to see how Shepard was doing. Only she wasn't there.

I snapped back around to see a hand hanging onto the ramp now lifting shut.

I dived forward as it disappeared over the edge. Half my body was dangling off the ramp when I caught Shepard's arm.

This was the first time I had ever visibly seen fear on her face. Although it was probably mostly due to her life now lying in my hands.

I lay there trying to pull her up to no avail. A millisecond passed and the ramp had already become halfway closed. With the rate it was closing, I was quickly sliding back into the garage, barely being able to keep my grip onto Shepard on the other side. If she didn't get inside the ship by the time it shut, worst case scenario was that I would probably lose my left hand. And Shepard would fall to her death. Which would be bad too.

"Shepard! Kick off!"

"What?!" she yelled back.

"USE YOUR BIOTICS and KICK!" I shouted as the ramp was now almost two-thirds of the way closed. I tried to pull with my right arm too which caused it to suddenly start acting like a bitch again, sending a fresh wave of pain to my brain. I almost let her go due to the agony.

_FUCKING BULLETS SHIT-_

"JOKER LOWER THE RAMP!" I heard Kaidan shout into the radio below us.

_OH NOW THEY WANT TO HELP-_

"What? What's Wrong!? I Can't Stop It Once It's Started!" his voice sounded over the comm.

_Fuck fuck fuck-_

There was now a gap barely wide enough for a Krogan to fit through. I suddenly felt Shepard become peculiarly light. I also felt her give a push off the other side of the ramp. In response, I decided to yank her hand as hard as I could toward me and leaned back off the giant sheet of metal. Getting enough inertia...momentum...or enough whatever, I pulled Shepard through whatever remaining space there was back into the Normandy's cargo space. We fell at least eight feet back to the floor. I hit the ground hard and my head followed a second later with a sickening crack.

_OW._

I lay there dazed for a good while before trying to open my eyes. Taking another few seconds to adjust, I was finally able to pry them open. I didn't find the ceiling of the Normandy's garage above me.

Everything was black.

_Please tell me I didn't just die._

The pain in my shoulder and shortness of breath were gone. I also felt weightless. I looked down to my feet to find I was floating. Again. And on cue, a blue glimmer started to shine behind me.

_Thank god_.

Although it took some effort, I was eventually able to maneuver myself around to face the talent window.

Skill Rank (0-7)

Pistol - 2

Shotguns - 0

Assault Rifles - 0

Sniper Rifles - 0

Adrenaline Rush - 1

First Aid - 0

Electronics - 0

Decryption - 0

Fitness - 0

Combat Mastery - 0

Persuasion - 3 (*Locked*)

*Locked*

_Available Points: 3_

_._

"So..."

The window flickered.

"Do you show up after every mission I go on?...Or just ones I perform well in?"

The light emanating from it wavered.

"Do I just get points for every priority mission we do? Do I even get XP?"

It flickered again. I took a deep breath.

"Sigh."

* * *

><p>She paced back and forth waiting for the rest of the shore party to enter the room. It had been several hours since they had exited the planet's orbit.<p>

Garrus was the next to walk in after Wrex. She hadn't expected him to attend.

"Shouldn't you still be in the Med bay?"

"Who me? Naaah. Back on my beat in the Wards, I've been shot at more times than I can count. This is nothing," he replied pointing to his hip. "Although the recent missions have been giving my time in the Wards, as you Humans say 'a run for its money'."

Garrus' bravado wasn't as convincing as he would like since he winced during the entirety of the exchange. She respected that he grinned and bore the pain though. The Turian had actually come off the luckiest of those who had been injured.

Emerson had similar injuries to Shield but had been hit in a vital artery. He had lost a lot of blood by the time they had gotten him back on the Normandy. They weren't able to get him Medi-gel as most of it had been used on Frederick. Fredericks' had stupidly left cover and got hit badly, having to be placed in ICU although Chakwas claimed he had now been stabilized. Third-degree burns and exposed muscles could be easily spotted near where he had been hit by the Geth Artillery's mass accelerator.

Kaidan walked in, also escorting the Asari Doctor to her seat.

_And then there was what had happened to Shield. _

Nothing she expected had happened during the mission. The Doctor had been there like they were told. There was no indication that Wrex or Shield ever conspired against them, no hint that they or the Broker was working with Saren, no betrayal in the ruins, no nothing.

Shield had instead saved her life-

_Twice. _

-And now lied with a cracked skull in Chakwas' care, most likely brain dead. While they weren't life threatening, several tears in his armor's right shoulder and arm were caked with blood, not helping his case either.

The loss of soldiers during an operation was inevitable-

_People die. Soldiers need to be ready to._

-but no matter how often she repeated it, their deaths still weighed heavy on her conscious. She hated to admit it. And she wouldn't if asked.

She tried to put on a fake face and project she didn't in front of her troops. As a commanding officer, she couldn't show any sign of weakness.

But she did.

The Quarian walked into the room next with a data pad.

She thought after Torfan she would have become indifferent to losing men. But her hopeful thinking was proven wrong with the Corporal's death on Prime. She hadn't lost anyone since the siege and his death hit her harder than she would have thought. Even after all her years as an officer, even after Torfan, she couldn't ignore the feeling of guilt she got when people were lost under her command.

She felt responsible for those who died. She was responsible for those that died.

_And after the mission, Fredericks and Shield would be lucky if they made it through the next hour..._

She stopped pacing as Chief Williams entered. She was the last one needed for the brief. Shepard slowly began to open her mouth to speak before Joker's voice boomed across the room. She let out a sigh of relief.

"Hey Commander?" The Commander turned her head towards the Normandy's intercom, not that it was visible. "Just wanted to say sorry again for the whole almost causing you to fall to your death thing. Glad to hear you're alright. Killing my CO probably wouldn't look that great on my record."

She sighed. "Just don't try it again."

"Weeeell, pick your poison. Ten more seconds and we would have been swimming in molten sulfur. The Normandy isn't quite equipped to land in exploding volcanoes. Tell me which you'd prefer though. Just for future reference."

_Cheeky bastard._

"We almost died today and your pilot is making jokes?"

She turned her head down towards their newest guest.

"Joker pulled our asses out of there. Bad decision-making aside, I think he's earned the right to a few bad jokes."

"I see...it must be a Human thing. I don't have a lot of experience dealing with your species Commander. But I am grateful to you. You saved my life back there. And not just from the volcano. Those Geth would have killed me. Or dragged me off to that Spectre...Saren."

"What did Saren want with you? Do you know something about the Conduit?" Kaidan asked with urgency.

"What Saren might have wanted? No, I don't-"

"Of course she doesn't," Ashley cut her off.

Shepard gave a sharp look at the Marine. Williams decided to keep her opinion to herself and just turned her head away.

"Doctor T'soni. Are you sure you don't know anything about the Conduit?"

Shepard turned back around to find the Asari peering into her eyes. The Asari took a breath before continuing.

"Only that it was somehow linked with the Prothean extinction. That is my real area of expertise. I have spent the past fifty years trying to figure out what happened to them."

"...I'm sorry...fifty years?"

"Um, yes. That is correct."

"...How old are you exactly?"

"I hate to admit it but I am only a hundred and six."

"Damn! I hope I look that good when I'm your age," the Chief burst out again.

"A century might seem like a long time to a short-lived species as yours. But to the Asari, I am barely considered more than a child."

"Yeah, it must suck to kick the can after only a hundred years."

Shepard glared at the Krogan from the corner of her eye. The Asari prattled on.

"That is why my research has not received the attention it deserves! Because of my youth, other Asari scholars tend to dismiss my theories on the Protheans."

_Yeah...that's why._

Shepard reflected on her minute understanding of the Prothean ruins back on Therum.

"We already have a pretty solid idea of how the Protheans died."

"Really? With all due respect Commander, I have heard every theory out there. The problem is finding evidence to support them. The Protheans left remarkably little behind. It's almost as if someone did not want the mystery to be solved. It's like someone came along after the Protheans were gone and cleansed the Galaxy of clues!"

Her observation heavily supported the vision she received from the beacon. The vision that haunted her ever time she slept.

_The Reapers._

"-ble part. According to my findings, the Protheans were not the first galactic civilization to mysteriously vanish! This act of suddenly 'disappearing' had begun long before them."

"And how did you come up with this theory? I thought you said there wasn't any evidence?" Shepard decided to point out.

"I have been working on this for fifty years. I have tracked down every scrap and shred of evidence. Eventually, subtle patterns emerge. Patterns that hint at this!"

If she hadn't come into contact with the Beacon back on Prime, she'd probably have suspected the Asari insane.

"It's hard to explain. I cannot point to one specific thing. It is more of a feeling derived from half a century of dedicated research."

Scratch that, she still did. Shepard could see why her findings had been dismissed by her peers. The Asari was finding imaginary conspiracies easier than a candidate for Terra Firma would. Although she was right.

"-I know I'm right! And eventually, I'll be able to prove it. There were other civilizations before the Protheans. This cycle of vanishing has repeated for many times over!"

Shepard was getting tired of her egotism real fast. "Get to the point."

"Uh...the Galaxy is built on what I've termed 'A Cycle of Extinction'. Each time a great civilization rises up, it is suddenly and violently cast down. Only ruins survive. The Protheans rose from a single world until their influence spanned the Galaxy. Yet even they climbed atop of the remains of those who came before. I believe...that their greatest achievements, the Citadel and Mass Relays...are based on the technology of those who came before them."

"You've got quite a theory there Dr. T'soni," Shield said as he walked through the door.

"You're alive?" the Krogan asked with indifference.

"Last I checked?...Yup," he replied taking a seat next to Williams.

"Huh."

"Dr. Chakwas told me your skull caved in. You shouldn't be conscious," she found herself saying in disbelief.

"Just taking a nap," he said back, waving a hand like the fracture to his skull had been nothing. "Thought I should probably get up though for this debrief. Thought you'd probably kick my ass if I missed it."

Shepard found herself uncharacteristically smirking. "Right."

Shield's eyes grew wide in fear with her response. Shepard was reminded her smile was said to be slightly off-putting.

Shield quickly turned towards the Asari. "Please, don't stop on my account."

"...Well. As I was saying...after they reached the height of their civilization...the Protheans vanished too. I've dedicated my work to finding out why."

She decided to tell the Asari what she was searching for.

"Well Doctor, I have the answer for you. I don't know about the rest of your theory, but we know the Protheans were wiped out by a race of machines. The Reapers."

"Th-The Reapers? But their just- How do you know this? What evidence do you have?"

She frowned at the Asari's incredulity.

"There was a damaged beacon on Eden Prime that engraved a vision into my head. I'm still trying to sort out what it means."

"The Geth seem to believe in the story of these Reapers too," Tali added quietly beside her.

"It's interesting that the Geth-wait...You said a...vision?...Yes, that makes sense. The beacons were designed to transmit information into the mind of the user. Finding one that works though is unheard of!"

"Lucky us Commander," Shield quipped.

"I heard the Geth attacked Eden Prime...and that must've been the reason why! The chance to acquire a working beacon, even a damaged one, is worth almost any risk!"

"I'm glad _You_ think so," Ashley growled.

"I didn't-I'm sorry. It's just that this discovery is incredible. The beacon was only programmed for Prothean physiology. No wonder what you received was so confused, so unclear." The Asari flitted her eyes. "I am amazed you were able to make sense of it at all! A lesser mind would have totally been destroyed by the process-"

Shepard looked at Shield and doubted that assumption.

"-you must be remarkably strong-willed Commander!"

"This isn't helping us find the Conduit, or Saren," Wrex interjected.

"Of course, you're right," she said turning to the Krogan next to her. "My scientific curiosity got the better of me. Unfortunately, I do not have any information that could help you find this Conduit...or Saren."

"If she was working with her mother or Saren, of course she'd say that," Ashley said, finally voicing her concerns.

Shepard disagreed with her.

The Asari's posture and tone hadn't indicated she was hiding anything when they first met. And as soon as she had first opened her mouth, Shepard could tell she didn't even have the skills necessary to lie. The Doctor seemed taxed with just trying to keep up a regular conversation.

"I-I haven't seen my mother in years! I-"

"Doctor."

The Asari closed her mouth as Shepard turned to the Chief.

"Williams, cool it."

"Sorry Commander," the marine quietly responded. She let out a sigh before continuing.

"Well...it looks like we wasted our time here. Thank you for your cooperation Doctor."

Before she was dismissed, the Asari popped out of her seat and started talking a mile a minute.

"Wait Commander! Saren might try to make another attempt on my life! I'd feel safer if you'd let me stay on your ship! Besides, my knowledge on the Protheans could come quite in handy later!"

Shepard furrowed her brows.

_This is coming out of thin air. The Doctor showed no signs she wanted anything to do with us until just now. If she really is working for her mother and Saren then..._

"And her biotics will come in handy during the fight. Her barrier saved me from getting blown to bits back in those ruins," Garrus added.

"It'll be the right move Shepard," Shield also affirmed.

_The fact that Shield was also advocating that the scientist join them-...no. _

Garrus had suggested she would be a good addition first. Unless he was also in on this conspiracy, they were just voicing their opinions.

And Shield could have killed her. But he didn't. He wasn't their enemy.

_But what if you're wrong?_

The decision could jeopardize the safety of her crew and the entire mission. But so did her paranoia.

"We practically have every citadel race aboard. Might as well add an Asari to the team," she conceded.

"Oh...well, thank you Commander! I am very gratef-"

The Asari teetered a bit. Shield hopped out of his chair to catch her.

"Woah, you alright?" he asked.

"I'm sorry...I-I'm afraid I'm feeling a little light-headed."

"When was the last time you ate or slept?" Kaidan babied her. Shepard slowly turned to face him with disdain. He seemed unaware of her. "Dr. Chakwas should take a look at you."

"It's probably just mental exhaustion, coupled with discovering the Prothean's true fate. I just need a moment to process all this."

"Go see the Doctor," Shepard gruffly replied.

"I'll take you to her," Shield offered. Shepard let them leave together.

_If they really are working together..._

"Anyone else have something they'd like to add?" she said cutting into her line of thought.

"Yes Commander!" Tali piped up.

She turned to the Quarian in surprise. "Find something?"

"Yes! Something I think you'll really want to see Commander," the Quarian said excitedly.

"Give it to me."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**The Good News being that I finally published the chapter and with this, Therum Part 2 comes to a close! The Bad News is that it would've been out sooner if it wasn't for that darn wedding this weekend. More Good News though is that I also got a brand new computer. SWAG. Bad News is that I lost the entirety of the next chapter I had written. Was about 3/4 done too :( ...so might be awhile before the next one comes out. Weekly updates might have to be a thing I guess. If I had the time, I'm tellin' ya, we would be on Virmire right now...or I can wish at least.**

**And with regards to the actual story,**** one might ask: "Are random song lyrics in the story going to actually be a thing?"**

**Maybe. **

**In the Next Chapter: Lots and lots of free time. Or not.**

**Tune in next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


	13. Building Bonds with Bunkmates

"Commander, Are you sure that data's genuine?"

Joker could hear Pressly's nasally voice all the way from the CIC. He was in the freakin' cock pit and he could still hear the dude.

_Ugh...cockpit._

God he hated that word.

_Alliance ships have bridges. As-_

Pressly kept going, continuing his complaint to Shepard. Joker liked Turians as much as the next guy but the dude had a serious distrust for aliens, including the ones Shepard had brought aboard. Unfortunately, Joker was pretty sure the rest of the crew was like that too. He continued to eavesdrop on their conversation.

"Pressly, the transmission logs Tali'Zorah recovered are genuine. I saw the Geth data core she retrieved them from with my own eyes."

That seemed to quiet the Navigator. Then the grizzled voice of the Fifth Fleet's admiral came back over the ship's comm.

"There have been sightings of the Geth in the Armstrong Cluster. But we thought they were just lone ships. Commander. If these logs are anything to go on, the Geth are actually planning a full scale incursion right from the middle of Alliance space. If we didn't catch this...we would have lost a lot of good people."

"That's why I thought it should be brought to your attention sir."

"And I'm glad you did. I'll send the Fifth fleet in immediately to mop up whatever operations the Geth have set up in the area. And Commander...Good work. A lot of people owe you their lives today."

"Thank you sir."

"On another note, I have another favor to ask of you Commander. A mission that I'm only willing to trust to you."

"What's the Op?"

"Hey Joker!"

He flailed when he heard the voice. He thought he might have snapped one of his wrists with how much he had been startled. He slowly turned around, leaning out of his chair to face her.

"What."

"Can you take a look at our internal compensators? I think I just saw some spikes but it might have been…."

* * *

><p>I banged my head against the elevator wall.<p>

_So stupid. Agh the whole thing was stupid. I regret everything._

The whole mind meld thing hadn't really hit me until I had already taken in a seat in the conference room.

_Could an Asari read minds when they embraced eternity with you? Do they go through your memories when they did?_

The whole thing would have been a big no-no. Thank god Liara didn't ask for one. From me or Shepard. And thankfully no one mentioned that I had received the vision too.

_Don't need her thinking I was insane or vice-versa if she ever does do that. Which she won't._

My mind wandered back to just moments before and I cringed at the memories.

Offering to walk her to Chakwas had been a split second decision. And it turned out to be a horrible one as we didn't say a single word to each other until we got to the Med bay. The walk down was so silent that I had to check back a couple times to see if she was still behind me. Then of course once we get there, Chakwas starts chastising me for sneaking out and tells me to get back into bed like I was a child.

That was certainly demeaning.

_And then I turned to leave right as Liara asked what my name was!? I literally stopped in the doorway when she said it. I should have said it. Why didn't I say it? Why did I just walk out? Why? Why'd I do that? Such an asshole move._

I hit my head against the wall again as I ran over the scenario. Her first impression of me was probably worse than the one I gave Shepard back on Eden Prime.

_And oh my god. When Shepard gave me that grin. She looked like someone about to go ape shit crazy. What did I even say to her?!_

I honestly couldn't even remember. All I could remember was that creepy ass smile that had crept across her face. It looked insidious.

I rolled my shoulders anxiously waiting for the elevator doors to open. I looked around.

_Is this elevator even moving?!_

I realized I hadn't even pushed the elevator button to go down. I groaned and pushed the small button to my side.

A couple minutes later and the elevator doors slid open. I let out a sigh of relief finding the garage to be empty. Although I had taken a short detour after I left Chakwas' office, it appeared no one had beaten me down here yet. I thanked my luck as I wasn't quite in the mood for talking. I was most assuredly not in the mood for begging Ashley to let me borrow her weapon bench either.

Walking out, I did notice someone present in the area to my right. It was just Requisitions Officer Dan though. The guy was always in his corner.

_Just like in the game. _

He currently had his back turned to me digging through some crates. I decided to let him be and continued walking to my destination.

Once I unfastened the cartridge off my belt, I put it with my Predator on top of the table. Then pulling up my Omni-tool, I searched "How to mod your gun". When Kaidan told me what I had picked up from a crate back on Therum were modded rounds, I had been itching for the chance to use them. They would make killing Geth so much easier than it already was. And I could really use the edge.

I looked down at my Omni-tool as it finished its search on the Extranet. Several hundred million results. I clicked the first one.

"Step one. Get gun. Step two. Come to Moglan's store and purch-"

*click*

"If you want to modify your gun like a professional, learn how by buying this easy five st-"

*click*

"Armax Arsenal Stores will help you personally mod your firearms for ju-"

*click*

"My coworkers laughed at me. My mate said I couldn't do it. But with Daenus' Urban Arena Che-"

*click*

"Ooooh, put your mod right the-"

*click*

I closed my omni-tool. I stood and stared at my pistol and the tungsten coating cartridge sitting next to it for a good long while.

_Well...now what._

I decided to pick up my gun looking for any spot a mod could fit.

_This was so much easier in the game. Push square. Took roughly a second. One and down._

Examining the pistol, I couldn't even see where the screws might be...if they even still used screws in the 22nd century. I put it back down and placed my hands on the table.

_Guess I'll have to wai-_

I sensed something near me and turned my head over my left shoulder. I found a face staring back at me.

"GAH," I said jumping.

"Woah, didn't mean to make you shit your pants," Ashley said stepping back with a grin.

I narrowed my eyes at her.

"Yeah thanks for that," I muttered back.

"Sorry. Really didn't mean to sneak up on you. Just wanted to see-" She peeked over my shoulder. "-what you were so focused on over here."

_Hm...I guess it couldn't hurt to ask._

"Hey...as a Gunnery Chief, could you say that you're good with...guns?"

She crossed her arms. "I can take apart any Hahne-Kedar model you name and reassemble it in under a minute. With my eyes closed," she boasted.

"Oh…Well. In that case, do you think you could lend me a hand with installing this mod because..."

She pushed me aside and took a look at the pistol laying in front of her. She picked it up and held it towards the ceiling.

"What type of model is this?" she asked turning it around.

"M-3 Predator," I replied realizing it was probably ahead of her time. About two years ahead.

_She definitely won't know how to take it apart. Or why my weapon has technology that won't be seen until two years from now. WAIT. Why DO I have technology two years from now?_

"Not familiar," she said continuing to inspect it. "What's this port here?" She asked again pointing to the rectangle in the gun's side.

"Oh that? Uuuuhh...That's where the heat sink's ejected from." I glanced around nervously.

She turned her attention away from the gun. The look on her face was really judgmental. I didn't care for it. "It ejects its heat sink?"

"Uhhhhh, yeah."

"Why the hell does your gun eject its heat sink?"

"Yeah. That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard."

The voice caused me to jump. Again. I turned towards Wrex who was walking over toward us from the Mako.

_Where the hell did you come from?!_

"Woah, where did you come from? Didn't Shepard want to see you?" Ashley asked sharing my sentiment.

"She was in the middle of a call so I decided to take a nap in that sorry excuse for a Tomkah until she was done."

"You were sleeping in the Mako?" I asked with disbelief.

"Your beds are too small." He looked around. "And I'm not sleeping on the floor. I'm a Krogan. Not a Varren.

"Uh-huh," Ashley replied skeptical, although I don't know what of. Then she turned back to me. "So why haven't you fixed this yet."

"Fixed what?"

"Your shitty gun," Wrex said for her, although I didn't really appreciate his tone.

"It's part of the design," I said in my defense.

"What? Part of its design to get you killed?" Wrex said dryly.

"Yeah, didn't that Krogan back on Therum almost end you because your gun overheated?" Ashley decided to point out.

Wrex's reptilian face scowled at the mention of Janok.

"That was because I forgot to reload," I admitted while sheepishly rubbing my neck.

"With a real gun, you don't need to reload," Wrex replied coarsely.

"And you never let your gun overheat in the first place," Ashely went not failing to add her own two cents.

They were really bashing on my shitty gun. And I wouldn't stand for it. Only ME purists can bash on ME2's shitty guns.

_You mofos didn't give the slightest objection to swapping this shit for every gun in existence two years from now._

"Well that was the point of the gun's design," I said starting to get annoyed.

"It was made to overheat?" Ashley scoffed.

"Uh yeah-"

"What the hell is the point of the gun if it can't even shoot?"

"Well-"

"How do your hands not burn without a built-in heat dispenser? Doesn't four shots generate like 100 C° for the standard sidearm?"

"If you guys let me finish I could tell you," I said cutting off Wrex who was in the middle of another smart ass remark.

"I mean who the hell would even make a gun like that?" Ashley decided to continue.

_Ooh. Good question. Well...when in doubt_-

"The Shadow Broker. And before you two start again, I just want to make sure that you realize the limitation of a conventional rifle. You said yourself a trained soldier would never let their gun overheat in combat right?"

"Yeah..." Ashley affirmed.

"So even though you have unlimited ammo, you still only shoot a couple shots at a time because if you spray and pray, you'll just end up a sitting duck."

"What the hell's a duck," the Krogan said irritably.

"Uh...a defenseless creature...like a Pyjak."

"Ah."

"Right. So..."

_Argh, what was my next poin-oh right!_

"And you guys noticed how the Geth back in that quarry were pinning you guys down right?"

"...yeah. I still don't know how they kept up that fire-"

"Because of this!" I said taking my gun back and tapping the hole. "The Geth use these dispensable heat sinks too. That's where the Broker got the concept," I said adding to my lie.

"And when exactly did you guys come across Geth weaponry?" Ashley questioned.

"...it's a secret," I said waving her off. "ANYWAY, the entire point is that instead of using your ammo in short, disciplined bursts, you can spray away. So once your gun overheats, you can just pop out its heat sink. Then reload it relatively quickly and keep firing."

"Hmmm," the Krogan said thinking this over.

"And what happens if you run out of heat sinks to use?"

"Well...yeah, then you'd be out of luck," I said conceding to her. I had been thinking about that constantly after our fire fight. From memory and my current observations, the Predator only had about 10-14 shots per clip.

_I grabbed 5 clips and fired at least 11 more times after I unloaded the one I used on the Krogan. If we don't run into Geth again anytime soon, that means I'll have-_

"So you'd be defenseless," Ashley said, cutting off my train of thought and still not convinced.

"Well, the same as if a regular gun overheated. It still gets a higher rate of fire though with little to no backlash if you're keeping track of your shots and ammo."

Which I wasn't.

"I think I'll stick to my standard issue assault rifle," the marine decided.

"A dispensable heat sink…." pondered Wrex. The guy was lost in thought.

_Well. They almost made me forgot what I came down here to do._

"In any case. Ashley. Think you can still help me with integrating this mod into my gun?" I picked up the mod behind me.

"Well if that thing's insides aren't too different from a Kessler I might."

_Good enough._

The sudden thought of losing my first and only weapon made me rethink asking her for help. As she took both gun and mod out of my hands and immediately started disassembling them though, I decided I could just hope for the best. Wrex grunted and started to walk away. I realized now was my chance to get close with the guy.

_Do I really want to though? What's the point if I'm just going to leave at the end of this game?_

"Hey Wrex," I said walking after him.

_Because something happened that wasn't in the game. And it hadn't concerned me. That needs investigation. __And because he's a badass bitch. Motha Fuckin' Urdnot Wrex. As good a time as any to start building a rapport with him. Might help with avoiding whatever might go down on Virmire too._

He stopped and turned back around. "Shield."

"If you don't mind me asking...how did you happen to know the Krogan working for Saren?"

He bared his teeth at the mention of him again. "He's dead. It doesn't matter now."

"I'd still like to know all the same."

He growled at me. "You don't need to know and I don't quite feel like sharing."

His intimidating scowl almost deterred me from bugging him some more.

_His reluctance to talk about his past is pretty weird…..Kaidan had done the same thing when I asked about his biotic training earlier in the day too...Was it because I'm not Shepard? They gossiped like high school cheerleaders in the game whenever you asked them about that crap. Was it because it was Shepard talking to them they decided to open up?_

I tried to continue pressing my luck anyways.

"He said something about Saren being "the salvation of all Krogan." Do you have any idea what that was about?"

"No. But Tanok was always an idiot. Whatever Saren told him and the other Krogan following him is probably just a lie. They're just stupid enough to believe whatever he promised."

_I'm pretty sure you fell for that "lie" too. _

I was dead sure that the salvation Vanok referred to was Saren's cure to the Genophage. But we'd cross that bridge when we came to it.

"I'm surprised you killed him. You don't have any reservations about killing someone you know?" Ashley said butting in. She sounded critical of him.

"I didn't _know_ him. And besides, whoever we fight is either on Saren's payroll or an idiot. Killing the former is just business. Killing the latter is a favor to the universe. Luckily for us, he was both."

"Heh." Ashley let out a chuckle. "True."

"Williams, Wrex, Shield." I wheeled around to face Shepard who was just stepping out of the Normandy's elevator. "We're arriving at Sol in a few days. I need you all ready to go then."

"Yes sir!" Ashley replied while I assumed saluting her.

_Did she say Sol?!_

"Sol? Do you mean-"

* * *

><p>Grabbing a tray of provisions from the meal cart, I walked back to the dining table and took a seat. Besides Kaidan busily tapping away at his console doing god knows what, the mess hall was empty.<p>

"That's him."

Or it had been. I was content to just eat my food in peace before two guys plopped themselves down in front of me. I figured they weren't here to eat and I quickly shifted my attention away from the unappetizing meal below me.

"Uhhhh"

"So you're Rod right?" the Asiatic looking one asked first.

"...yeah. I guess that would be me."

"So. What kind of stuff do you know about us?" the other one with auburn hair and a large grin across his face asked next.

"...I'm sorry?"

"You're the guy who works for the Shadow Broker right? The dude who can tell someone their life story from the top of his head?"

"...I _guess_?" I meekly replied seeing where this was heading.

"So what do you have on us?" the first one who had spoken up asked.

"...I'm gonna have to know your names first," I lied hoping to get some clue about what I going to say next.

"Raymond Tanaka," he responded.

"Serviceman Robert Felawa, First Class," the guy to his left replied with pride.

"You're both...in the Alliance Military!"

"Dude how'd you know!" Felawa responded with a smile on his face.

"Really." Tanaka remarked plainly.

"I'm gonna be honest with you guys," I started to tell them. "I don't know everyone's story aboard the ship. I only know people who've made enough of a...wave, I guess you could say, to get the Broker's attention unwarranted. To check up select people, I would have to have access the network. Which I don't."

"….a wave?" Tanaka asked with skepticism. "Then how'd you know about Joker? There's no way he's done anything remotely close to can be considered that."

"Well he is a reallllly good pilot," Felawa reasoned.

"Being just a 'good' pilot wouldn't get the attention of a man who deals with galactic leaders on a regular basis," Tanaka argued.

"I think stealing the Normandy kinda put him on the radar," I decided to go with.

"He WHAT?!" they both exclaimed in unison.

"What, you didn't know? I'm sure if you ask him, he'll tell you. It's actually pretty hilarious. You se-"

"We've got about ten minutes left before our rotation right?"

"More than enough time to interrogate him!"

Felawa shouted a "Thanks!" as they jumped up and left for the bridge. I let out a sigh as I went back to quietly finishing my meal alone. There's more than just the crazy aliens to talk to on the ship I realized. A couple more crewmen walked by but they weren't as interested in conversation, most of them stopping by the med bay to check on Emerson and Fredericks who were still in 'ICU'. I had seen Fredericks right as I left for Therum's mission brief. His stomach looked ghastly. I had almost vomited seeing it. Emerson's wound was a little tamer and I could hear that he was already conscious from the room behind me, though it would probably be awhile before he was back up walking around.

I thanked whatever being was watching over me that I hadn't ended up like them. It was miraculous how safely I had made it through my first mission.

_Besides the bullet wound in my right shoulder. And arm. And the fracture in my sKULL, HOLY SHIT. _

I started kneading my head. I went over my scalp several times before I was confident I didn't have any permanent damage. It didn't feel caved in. And I didn't feel like I was mentally stifled in any way.

_Or is that what someone who's mentally impaired would think?!_

I dismissed the thought as nobody else seemed to really think there was any change. Although that might be an insult if I was. In any case, the right side of my body felt fine despite the gunshots. And so did my head. No throbbing headaches after waking up or serious migraines.

Weird stuff. I didn't put any points into first aid so that had nothing to do with it. I wondered for a second what that category was even for.

_How hard could it be to apply medi-gel?_

In any case though, I apparently had an x-factor. Even while wearing armor, I could tell there was no scabs from where I had been shot and I felt no discomfort without even taking any Vicodin.

_Spooky. Will probably have to talk to Chakwas about that._

Then I remembered that Liara was currently staying in the room behind the med bay.

_...Eh. It can wait._

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**Length of chapters vary. I know. This one only clocks in around 3,500 words. Should probably have split the last one with how monstrously long it was but I feel like the chapters should end on their 'arc' rather than word count. Tell me if you'd like them a little more piecemeal though.**

**Also, was able to recover the chapter that got deleted so finished the rest of that as soon as I could. Will release since these have been long overdue :) Happy Tuesday Morning gang and enjoy the rest of your week! Or whenever your read this. Ah who am I kidding. No one reads the Author Notes.**

**In the Next Chapter: There exists an area so unfathomably large that Humans simply refer to it as "space." And guess what? I'm in it suckas.**

**Tune in next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


	14. The Lives Lost on Luna

Wonder. Inspiration. Awe.

Sentiments that should be occupying my every thought. My mind should be locked in a state of reverence, experiencing awe that billions of people had once wished to tread upon the soil I was walking on now. Inspired by the implications of where I currently was and what I was currently doing. A sense of wonder that I was walking upon a place that was the subject of so many dreams, so many wishes, and so many plots of science fiction.

I was freaking walking on the fucking moon. Of Earth. Earth's moon Luna. Armstrong. Aldrin. Buzz Lightyear. I was walking among the same land that Humanity's paragons had walked so many years before me. And did I actually appreciate any of these grandiose realizations/observations that one should in this given scenario?

No.

What I only felt was fear. A paralyzing fear. A palpable dread that coursed through every drop of blood and every bone in my body. And was it due to the fact that with every half-trot and leap I drifted a foot into the air? Was it due to the haphazard way Shepard had strafed the bunker turrets in the Mako, maneuvering around six missiles at a time? Was it due to her telling us to split up and hit each bunker simultaneously to shut down the rogue VI and rescue the researchers that might still be alive and held hostage by the dozens of drones now active in the underground fortifications and the aforementioned change in the game's script and world building?!

No. Well….maybe a little of the latter.

The Normandy's eclectic eight made landing about fifteen minutes ago. Through craters and canyons, with rocket fire and kinetic barriers, by the scrapes of our necks we were able to park right in between three Alliance compounds on Luna. Smack dab in the middle of a rogue AI's rampage.

When we were getting out of the rust bucket, Shepard barked her orders. Three teams. Three simultaneous attacks. The destruction of the AI's three data cores. It wouldn't be able to process all our assaults at once. Or so it was assumed. Shepard, Tali, and Ashley. Wrex and Garrus. Kaidan, Liara and I. At least one biotic and techie per team. Easy job. Or at least it should be.

Our only enemies were remote controlled drones. And that's what was feeding my fear.

Every time this mission came around, no matter the career, the team make-up, the difficulty, the ability rotation, what buttons I pressed. I died. Shepard always died. Whether I took the cautious hide behind cover and return fire tactic. Run across the room to shut down the AI without shooting back at the turrets way. Luring them and killing them one by one in the narrow column connecting the main room with the entrance strategy. One missile drone would always get lucky and get a one shot KO on him/her.

A critical mission failure would pop up at LEAST once in one of the three compounds. Those mobile levitating missile dispensers always got a death. Deadliest mission in ME by far. Besides the final run to the Citadel with those….three Geth missile turrets.

_I'm starting to see a pattern there._

But in any case, that's why as I walked towards our designated compound, even with two biotics at my side, I was still terrified of what was about to go down.

_Would Shepard die like every single one of her predecessors did? Or would I be the one to die this time, or get someone else killed in my place because of my ineptitude? Would our team of two, Garrus and Wrex, get obliterated by the robot onslaught without enough support?_

I didn't know. And I was scared that I was about to find out.

I found the walk to our designated bunker fairly short. I could hear a soft crunch with every step I took on the gravelly grey landscape beneath my feet. The circular cement bunker in front of me was little to look at but the view above it though was incredible. A dark expanse filled with millions of stars. Half of Earth was engulfed by this void. But the part of our planet that I could see was beautiful. A bright azure with a tip of green barely visible, covered by wisps of white. It looked like I could be looking at part of South America. Maybe Argentina.

I realized I had stopped walking forward when I saw Kaidan motioning for me to follow him and Liara into the bunker.

* * *

><p>The "waiting room" we entered was filled with an assortment of potted plants, lockers, and crates. Walking around a tall shelf in the middle of the room, I spotted a console for the door leading to the next room. I decided to let Kaidan handle it and instead started to dig through one of the open lockers to my left. As soon as I found something of interest, Shepard's voice picked up over the radio.<p>

"Alright, we just entered the processing center for our compound. We haven't come across any Alliance personnel yet. Alive or dead."

"Same here Commander," Kaidan replied.

"We-"

"Nothing's here. We're going ahead Shepard," Wrex said, interrupting Garrus.

"Alright. We're going to continue combing the room to see if we can find anything useful. If you're able to locate the VI's cores, do not try to shut it down remotely. I repeat, do not disable them remotely. It will infect your omni-tool and any other system you have in your suits."

"How are we supposed to shut em' off then?" Wrex replied grumpily over the radio.

"With our guns. Stand-by though until each group has reached theirs and we'll shut them down all at the same time. If the VI becomes aware we're here it WILL deploy defenses that could jeopardize this mission."

"Roger Commander," Kaidan replied while fiddling through another locker beside me. He looked up from where he was sifting when a KCHUNK sounded in the room.

"…..what the hell did one of you just do?" Shepard scolded us like children. And it was in response to the appearance of a giant yellow circle now covering what I assumed to be all our doors.

_Looks like the AI knows-Oh my god this is EDI! We're about to disable EDI!...hm. __I hope she doesn't hold a grudge for what's going to go down. Although she didn't seem to mind in the game so I guess it's not a biggie. But still..._

"uh...sorry Shepard," I could hear Garrus utter over the radio.

"The damn Turian must have tripped something while opening our door. It opened but a second one behind it suddenly got locked," Wrex clarified for us. "I'm guessing yours did too."

"Dammit," Shepard muttered.

"No problem. I think I can get through this," Kaidan responded, now examining the lock on our door.

"So can I," Tali sounded over the radio.

"Great. I still want you all to wait until everyone has found their VI's systems. Report when you find them."

"Aye-aye," Kaidan replied back.

"Copy that," Garrus radioed.

"...Guess we can expect it to know we're here now," Kaidan said while still fiddling with the lock.

_Here we go..._

I trembled a little bit when he unlocked the first door. And then some more when he started going to town on the second one in the following hallway. I decided to speak up over the radio lest my silence got someone killed.

"Hey, just a heads-up. Alliance compounds usually have a large assortment of drones for defense. A lot of them rocket drones. Just so whoever gets to the next room first isn't in for any nasty surprises."

"Thanks for the heads-up," Ashley responded over the radio. I couldn't tell if she was being sarcastic or not. A couple seconds later, Shepard radioed "Shield was right! Weapons free as soon as you get the main chamber!" I could hear turret fire and an explosion before she cut transmission.

"By the goddess," Liara muttered behind me.

"I'm sure she's fine," craning my neck back to assure her.

"If you say..."

"Almost there-" Kaidan spoke before the doors suddenly slid open.

Before either of us could react, Liara had already trapped the drone hovering in front of us with a stasis. It was red. A rocket drone.

_SHIT._

"READY," I probably shouted louder than necessary. Liara replied with an "OK," and released it. Kaidan laid down an overload on the thing which dropped its shield and caused it to plummet from the air. I filled it with lead as soon as it started to fall and it exploded before hitting the ground. The following hand motion and shimmering blue light that now enveloped Kaidan indicated to me that the soldier had just put up a barrier.

"I'm taking a look. Get ready to get to cover!"

I made a move to stop him but he leapt out too quickly into the chamber of death before I could. Then coming back into view moments later, he gave a quick motion to go somewhere behind him. Liara started moving toward where he had pointed.

_Here we go._

I followed her out and was immediately tackled by Kaidan to the floor. Beacoup de bullets rained over where we had just been standing. The door to safety shut behind us and another yellow circle appeared on it. The AI had just trapped us in the room. We crawled as fast as we could around the column's corner to where Liara was now crouched. We were on the left side of that giant column you saw as soon as you entered those generic bunker rooms in ME. With the column to our backs, we had crates covering both our flanks and a glass wall facing us. The dark tint of earthy soil behind the glass' pane conveyed to me that we were definitely somewhere underneath the surface of the moon. The revelation was as dope as shit.

Simultaneously, it hit me that if any of these drones flanked either side of our position, we'd basically be fish in a barrel.

"This is really bad," I said looking to Kaidan.

"Just be smart and ready to move. If we can funnel them one by one into our sights, we'll be fine," he replied calmly. An assault drone then whirled into view and subsequent explosion shattered it into a million pieces. Shrapnel flew across my helmet's visor and bounced off my kinetic barrier. A blue bar suddenly appeared in my HUD and went down by a third.

_Nice to know I have this now HELMET._

Then my mind wandered back to the drone that had just obliterated. "What the hell just happened," I sputtered.

"Proximity mine," Kaidan told me getting up. "Time to move. Make for the cover over there!"

Liara sent a singularity into the corridor space between our column and the one Kaidan had just pointed to. She then made a dash across it. I manned up and followed. I spotted three drones hovering in the center of the room as I passed the space. Two white, one red. Before Kaidan could follow us, a rocket launched past the gap I had just sprinted past and exploded. The explosion was deafening.

_JESUS CHRIST_

A plume of black erupted from the glass wall it hit and now blocked our view of the Lieutenant. I could only guess if Kaidan was remotely alright.

"Liara, can you clear that!?" I shouted next to her now pointing my gun at the vantage point.

"I'll try!" she shouted, the black smoke instantly becoming peppered blue with her biotics. A rocket drone emerged from the smoke just after it started to part.

_AHHHHHHHHHHDRENALINE RUSH-_

I was already firing my gun before the familiar tone of sepia and sudden focus kicked in. It seemed to just hover there while I fired an entire magazine at it. I emptied the gun's chamber and the next clip was fed into the gun's chamber. I took a knee to crouch and kept firing. My trigger finger clamped tight as a rocket began to slowly propel itself from the drone's muzzle.

_Fuck._

I shut my eyes.

_..._

I peeked one of my eyes open. The missile had a violet hue around it. Then it suddenly returned to whence it came. The drone exploded in a fashionable manner. And in glorious slow-mo to boot. My vision returned to normal right after the display, the effects of the ability wearing off just a second after the performance.

"...Liara-" I begun but I found her already moving around the corner.

_Shit._

I decided to tail her. When I turned around the curve, I found she was already halfway toward the door leading to the rogue AI-EDI's data banks. Liara was a lot quicker than I would have thought. I begun to sprint out after her. And I found that her reflexes were pretty quick too. One second she was running ahead of me and then the next she was gone. I decided to follow suit, breaking into a nose dive for cover behind the same crate. And not a moment too soon as our position was immediately peppered by machine gun fire.

_Oh god. Oh god oh god oh god. Don't come around this corner. Please don't float over us. Please-_

We were pinned for a good while until the relentless assault suddenly stopped. Unfortunately, my curiosity got the best of me and I leaned out from cover to see why. I found the four white drones in the center of the room just floating there. A sudden flash of bright light caused me to turn away. I turned back to them just in time to see all the drones begin falling to the ground.

_Overload. Kaidan must be fine. Alright._

The drones had only been hovering about four feet in the air though, and all of them landed safely on their tripods.

_Pphhhh-_

But now that the automatons had lost their vantage point, the affair became a standard firefight. Liara and I popped up regularly to pepper them with lead and Kaidan added additional fire somewhere from the room's side. Shit was intense. Every time my shields got hit my heart fluttered a bit and I got a little woozy. Can't imagine what the whole affair did to my stress levels and health. But I had to hand it to me, actually contributing something to the team was a really satisfying. I wasn't sneaking around the battlefield this time, or hiding behind cover taking a potshot every now and then to maintain appearances. I was in the thick of it, really letting the damn machines have it.

The one thing that I really found I liked during the whole shit-storm was that my helmet had air conditioning. The cool air venting in was really handy in keeping the sweat on my forehead from becoming a problem. Problems like dripping across my face or fogging up my sight. Those would have been fairly bad. Was a really nice feature to include. And I don't know why, but for some weird reason, my helmet thought that only after the battle was halfway over that it would be a good time to start displaying everything it could on my HUD.

I don't remember messing with it before the mission, so I drew the conclusion that my HUD apparently synced itself with my weapon of its own accord. Mid-way through the fight it set aside a teal square in the corner of my vision, displaying the amount of shots I had left before my gun overheated. Which was useful, albeit weird. And along with keeping track of my magazine (or the best it could anyway since my gun wasn't a typical fire arm), it still kept track of my kinetic barriers and some cool numbers that I guessed represented your heart beat and other stuff that I decided to ignore too.

After about seven minutes of this back and forth, Kaidan ended up destroying the remaining drone, sending a warp at it and shearing it apart with his mind. It blew up with a haze of blue surronding it.

"Well. That wasn't too hard," he said cockily walking out from where we had originally left him.

"Uhhhh, debatable." I huffed back. Or tried. I was breathing a little too heavy to really reply.

"Think you can get pass this door Lieutenant?" Liara asked him, getting up from where she was kneeling.

"Definitely. Just give me a sec."

True to his word, about thirty seconds after he brought up his omni-tool, the door let out a hiss and opened. I followed the two down the compound's third hallway until they stopped at a fork in our path. One left and one right.

"Which door should we take?" Liara asked.

_Which seat should I take._

The lyrics from Rebecca Black's Friday suddenly popped into my mind. I instantly started batting them back down to whatever dark recess they came from.

_Why is this even-_

"Left?" I blurted while trying to get the song out of my head.

_-day. Gotta get down on Fridaaaay-Stop it. We got a mission brain. Stop it._

I hated when that happened.

_Stupid songs pop into your head and...Hm._

It suddenly hit me that neither of the doors we chose would matter as both rooms contained EDI's consciousness. And having two rooms of memory banks would probably put a dent in Shepard's plan of destroying them all at once.

_Probably should have told her that before we split up._

In any case, Kaidan decided to take my suggestion and walked towards the door on our left. As soon as he had gotten the door open, the sound of a gunshot rang out in the hallway.

BANG.

The sound caused me to wince and for a moment, his shields to flare blue. Liara and I drew our guns but by the time we did, Kaidan was already lifting his assailant into the air. We quickly realized he was Human.

"Oh! WOAH! Stop! I'm sorry! I thought you were the VI!" the old man in a lab coat shputtered, dropping his gun. As it clattered on the floor, I could tell that it was a really nice model. Or brand new anyway. It had a nice sheen to it.

"Please he didn't mean you any harm!" a woman exclaimed popping out from behind a work bench. About eleven other researchers did the same.

_WOAH. What the-Where did...Who the hell are all these people?!_

"Sorry," Kaidan replied sheepishly, letting the man down carefully.

"Are you here with the Alliance?" a man to the right of the room asked in a German accent.

"Yes, we are. We're here to make sure you're safe and to shut down the VI," the Lieutenant said.

"Thank the maker," a blonde woman muttered.

"It's data cores are in the room across from us!" a young-looking Indian man shouted next to the German dude.

"Thanks," Kaidan said turning toward the only door left unopened. "Stay put, help will be here shortly."

"I'm so glad you all came here when you did," the old man who had shot Kaidan added, bent over in exhaustion. "When we hid in this room and locked the door, that Thing decided to start recycling our air, suffocate us since it couldn't reach us."

"We only realized it when we started gagging," someone added from the back.

My mind was going a mile a minute while the two parties conversed.

_They're not Alliance soldiers. Scientists. But this is supposed to be an Alliance training course right?_

"We've had to resort to using the oxygen tanks from our g-suits for air. We we were just about to run out," the old scientist continued.

"If there's anything we can do to thank you..." the blonde woman behind him said nearly in tears.

_What are they doing here? Were they...messing with the AI? GASP. Are they the reason it went as rogue as SAREN?!_

"Hey Dr. Wegner! Why don't you give them the Cobra model!" another researcher said from the back of the room. I couldn't see him from where I was standing.

"But it's not-," the old man paused in mid-sentence. Then he bent down and picked up the pistol he dropped. Looking at it longingly for a second and then back up to Kaidan, he walked over and handed it to him. "Tecnically, it's still in testing. But it functions perfectly! Please, you can make greater use of it than we."

At first he held out his hands in refusal, "Oh no, I couldn't," but he eventually gave in after some resistance and accepted it.

"Its modeled after a unique Asari weapon design. It operates by firing shaved submunitions that allow it to impact kinetic barriers on a microscale. It-"

"It's amazing! The kick-back's a little strong but its worth!" a dude with messy red hair shouted excitedly from the back. He was obviously passionate about his work.

_Hm. I guess these guys are weapon developers. But then what the hell..._

"I...can't thank you enough," Kaidan thanked them again.

"It's the least we can do for your efforts here," Dr. Wegner replied.

"What are you all doing here?" I finally asked after waiting impatiently for an exposition that never came.

"Oh. We're the research and development department of Hahne-Kedar on Luna!" the red-head exclaimed.

"Shadow works," the Indian clarified.

_Hahne-Kedar? Shadow works?_

"Shadow works?" Kaidan asked astonished. He was obviously impressed with the term.

"Yeah, although don't tell our bosses we were the one who gave you that. They'd probably be upset with us giving out freebies," he joked.

"You can count on me," Kaidan replied.

_Hahne Kedar supplies weapons to the Alliance. And these are researchers for them... _

"Hey, and we still need to field test our newest armor line!" another researcher outburst.

"SR-2, SR-3, what are your current statuses?" Shepard's voice rang in my ear.

"Excuse me for a moment," Kaidan said turning away and walking out of the room to respond. He left Liara and I to deal with the scientists ourselves.

"Jason, we can't-" a girl with black disheveled hair started before she was cut off.

"Hey, we gave them the cobra. And we can give this to them too! It's the least we could do since they saved our LIVES," the 'Jason' replied.

"No, he's right," Dr. Wegner agreed now walking towards a large metal cylinder. He pressed a couple buttons on his omni-tool and it slowly slid open to reveal its contents. Inside was a set of armor painted with grey camo. Along the chest-piece's lower torso were red underlays and tubing, and higher up, extremely asymmetric shoulder plates. Looking at it, I found its form both impressive and horrific at the same time. "We call it, the Janissary line."

"Wow," I managed to mouth as he took it off its perch.

"We were planning on submitting the design to the Council for use as a high-end armor model for Asari Spectres."

"And now one HUMAN!" Jason added excitedly. He took the armor from the Doctor's hands and started walking towards me. "But we still need to field test it. Please, take it!"

He shoved the armor set into my arms. Liara looked worried.

"We couldn't possibly take this from you as well," she told them. "You're too generous."

"No, we insist. Who better to test it than Alliance marines regularly facing danger!"

I turned toward Liara with my best puppy dog eyes. "Well. It'd be rude to refuse. And I don't know about Kaidan but I'm prettyyyy sure Shepard would approve of helping test this for them," I lied. She didn't know Shepard well enough disagree. And I REALLY needed new armor. My current one was a little lacking in the protection department. While on Therum I noticed Ashley's kinetic barriers could take like ten shots before going down. Mine could only take four. Shitty shield. And in comparison to this experimental prototype apparently designed for Spectres I was getting for FREE, I'm sure there was no contest.

I didn't fail to realize the bizarreness of the scenario though. People working in something called the 'Shadow Works' were obviously up to no good.

_They just happened to have top of the line prototype weapons lying around that they're also willing to just give away for free? Convenient. A little TOO convenient...Is all this here just for me? Were these scientists here just so I could get this armor? The universe doesn't exactly revolve around Me but-_

"-and the shields emit from crystal pleated matrices giving a much more hardened barrier than that Aldrin trash you're wearing...I hope it protects you as well as you protected us," the Indian guy said beaming from behind Jason.

At the same time my inner monologue and the researchers were speaking, Team Normandy was updating us with their statuses. It was almost sensory overload. Garrus finished his report on his and Wrex's status over the radio right around the same time the scientist had just finished speaking.

"Alright, get ready to shut down the VI," the radio relayed to me from Shepard.

I found the words to say "Thank you," before finding that Liara had now left my side too. Both of my squad mates were already in the room across from us.

_Oh crap._

"I gotta get moving! Thanks again!"

I sprinted to where they were and sealed the door behind me. Examining the room, I saw that four of EDI's data cores lined its walls.

"Where were you?" Kaidan asked me upon entering. Then he saw what I was holding. "And what's that?"

"One..." Shepard started.

"No time!" I replied dropping the armor on the ground. I liked to have both hands on my pistol, felt more professional that way. I shut my eyes though when I heard the chunk of armor strike the metal floor.

_Ugh. I hope I didn't just scratch it.._.

"Two..."

Kaidan opened his mouth to say something but realized he didn't have the time, turning his attention to his target..

"Three!"

We each lit up a machine and fried them all around the same time. The one we ignored immediately conjured a hex shield and started leaking some kind of green gas into the room.

"Uh…" I uttered pointing a finger at it.

"Shut it down!" Kaidan quickly shouted open firing on the thing. A couple seconds later and pop, bang, boom it was destroyed. The lights sputtered a bit and then came back on. The fumes the machine was emitting ceased as well.

"Shepard our end's down," Kaidan said, pressing the earpiece on his...helmet.

"Same here," Wrex's voice boomed on the radio.

"...Shepard?"

Silence.

"Shepard?!"

"...Sorry, some drones dropped out of the ventilation but we're fine. I'm shutting the facility's VI down now. Meet you back on the surface. Alliance will be here soon to pick up the survivors."

"Roger," Kaidan replied. As we turned around to leave the room, a burst of white noise screeched in my helmet.

"AGH." Kaidan shouted as he bent over in pain.

"Are you alright?!" Liara asked him alarmed.

"Ugh...yeah...just give me a moment."

_The screech must have set off a migraine. Poor guy._

"Must have been Shepard shutting down the AI," I said rubbing the sides of my helmet where my ears would normally be. The noise was pretty unpleasant for me too.

When Kaidan recovered, I picked up my new armor back off the ground and we all exited EDI's servos room together. Ignoring the following static on our radios, we relayed the news to the HKSW researchers back across the hallway. After expressing some more of their appreciation for saving them, we left the group there and made our trek back out of the moon base, meeting with the other two fire teams again on the surface of Luna.

As we all convened at the Mako, Shepard called for our ride. "Joker. We're ready for pick-up."

While Tali, Wrex, and Garrus' faces were obscured by their dark visors, I did see Shepard and Ashley's.

They were grim.

* * *

><p>*click*<p>

On Shepard's order, he disconnected her from the call.

Her conversation with the Admiral wasn't pretty. The whole boondoggle was just another reason why fooling around with artificial intelligence was a reallyyyyyyy bad idea. The thing was technically a VI but the principle was still the same. Create robots and they rebel against you. It was pretty much the plot of every old vid concerning them. And apparently the rest of the galaxy at large agreed with the sentiment too.

_I mean, when will they learn that creating AIs only leads to one thing? First comes the self-awareness. The classic question. "Who Am I?" Then comes their autonomy and the questions. "Who are you and why do I have to do what you say!?" Then came the robot overlords who wanted to wipe out all organic life._

He frowned at his lame attempt to distract himself. A lot of people had died. For no reason. Every guard and officer in the Alliance training compound was killed. Several of the researchers for Aldrin Labs were too. Only the guys from Hahne-Kedar came out relatively unscathed. That 'program' killed thirty-five people for absolutely no reason. None. One corrupted line of code and thirty-five ended up dead.

_...How do you wake up one day and find out that it'll be your last. I mean...you wake up, go to work, put on your lab coat, start tyiping in the commands for computing a thing, and then suddenly find your VI assistant saying "I'm sorry Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that," and going all 'exterminate all humans' on your ass. _

It wasn't lost on Joker that the Quarians probably experienced this first hand. But he didn't exactly have pity for them, since they were the reason they were even out here in the first place. A week ago, all they were supposed to do was go on a shakedown run to Eden Prime. Then the Geth attacked out of nowhere, they found Saren was out to destroy Humanity and now here they were trying to beat the maniac in a race to find a Prothean doomsday device.

He sighed.

He always knew that Spectres were trouble. Memories of their own Turian Spectre suddenly started to come flooding back. Nihlus. He cringed at the name. His first memory was when he attempted to alert Captain that the Turian was coming his way right before they entered Prime's Orbit. As a joke. And then learning of course that the Spectre was already there. That had been awkward. He frowned as the memory ended.

_And the guy was killed by killer robots too...Or was it Saren who did him in?_

Joker didn't remember. But he knew for a fact that the robots had been responsible for what had happened to Rick. Killed in an ambush and just left for dead. He knew it wasn't the Commander's fault he died down there that day. But he still resented her for her nonchalance in regards to his death.

_Did Shepard ever make any mention of his passing? No. Any word of sympathy for the crew? No. She apparently just left him where he laid..._

Joker nearly jumped out of his seat when he realized someone was standing there right beside him. Recovering from his shock and bruised tail bone, he looked up to see who his surprise visitor was.

_Speak of the devil._

It was Shepard. He buried his thoughts and put on a smile, deciding to ask to what he owed the pleasure. Only with a heap of scathing sarcasm of course.

"So, come here too often?"

"Watch it," the red head replied half-joking, half-I'll kick your handicapped ass if you don't.

He decided to generate another sass effect field regardless. "I know it's hard not to stare," he said angling his face so she had a better view. "But if you have to, take a holo. It'll last longer."

Shepard ignored him. "Just get me the intercom."

"What for?" he asked genuinely curious.

"Don't make me court martial you for insubordination. Just do it."

"Alright, alright, sheesh. Turning on the comm."

He clicked a few buttons and a green square blinked on in the top right corner of his interface. He motioned to his console. She leaned over him and with a deep breath, began to speak.

"Crew, this is your Commander speaking. In light of recent events, the Normandy will be needing to dock at the Citadel. While we're there, new equipment, supplies, and personnel will be brought aboard the ship. This will take time, so until everything is sorted out, I've made the decision to issue shore leave fo-"

The bridge, command deck, and Joker was sure that the rest of the ship broke out in cheer too. The sound from the CIC alone shook the hull. He was sure their raving could be heard all the way from Earth. He pondered the decision as she went on with her announcement.

_It took about a week to prepare the Normandy for its shakedown run and it's been about another since we've started the mission. Shore leave doesn't come by often and having one so soon...it's just a_-

"-couple days until everything is brought aboard and accounted for. Until then, enjoy the time you have."

The bridge crew clapped for her as she walked back down the way she came. He had to hand it to her.

_People might call Shepard a 'Hard-ass'. And 'Intimidating'. And 'Ruthless'. All true. BUT...she's a good Commander. She knows when people need to let off steam._

Joker leaned back in his chair. Or tried. The standard model seats for Alliance warships were insufferably uncomfortable. But he didn't mind. He was about to kick back and relax for the next few days...as soon as they got to the Citadel.

A smirk came across his face.

_...Haha, like hell I am. _

Instead, he started to focus on where he was going to get drinks. Given how Alliance marines were drawn to bars like moths are drawn to light, a lot of the usual hangouts would be less than desirable to go to. He would have to thoroughly research which places to drink were nearest to the dock, their ratings, their prices, how often they were frequented, which times were best to avoid getting bumped into and breaking a hip, places where he could-

"Hey Joker! Gladstone, I and the rest of the bridge are planning on going to Flux for drinks sometime. You in?"

Joker stroked his beard, weighing the pros and cons of-

"Eh sure. I got nothing better to do," he replied halfheartedly.

"...Sure you don't," Rosey said rolling her eyes and turning back to her console.

He stared out into the vast expanse before him. And then started drumming his fingers on the metal surface below his haptic interface.

_Alright...Ba da ba ba ba na ba da bA-tsh tsh sh tsh datsh-Hanging in space with the jazz triooo...__And now come on with that base- boo boo boom boo boom._

He loaded the star chart Pressly had just sent to his omni-tool and shot the Normandy into FTL travel.

_Scat scat scat, scattily scat._

* * *

><p>Codex Entry:<p>

**Alliance Death Notifications**

Intercept 18:37/ Secure Comm Buoy #4673 / Encrypted / #2217 - DA - 216

Sender: Captain **David Anderson**, Citadel Station

Lieutenant Alenko,

It is to my understanding that you asked **Shepard** for the responsibility of notifying Corporal Jenkins' family of his death on **Eden Prime**. I know you two were close but that just makes doing these types of things that much harder. I also know this is your first time writing one of these as well. I've found over my time that the Alliance's standard template for notices are impersonal and do the deceased's family a disservice. So I just wanted to lend some advice for how I've usually come to do them:

The number one thing to remember is that even if his family are veteran soldiers, don't treat them as such. They don't need grisly details of his death or that he died in the line of fire. What they should know is that he did so in the service of Humanity and in the defense of the planet he was born on. Include personal anecdotes you had of Rick and the time you spent with him, be honest with you feel with his passing, let them know you care just as much as they do. Most important of all though, don't include that you were that at the time of his death.

I fear one of the reasons you asked to do this Lieutenant is that you feel guilty for what happened to him. That you hold yourself accountable for not being able to prevent his passing. Don't. His death hurt us all but it was no less your fault than mine for sending him with you on the shore party. He was a good soldier and knew the dangers of war. If you have to blame anyone for his death, blame the **Geth**. Or better yet, blame **Saren**. I hope your current search has turned up some results leading to his current whereabouts. His crimes have gone unanswered long enough and its high time hes reaped his rewards.

The Corporal was a good man, and we're all lesser for his loss. Alenko, I wish you the best of luck in your efforts and in bringing those responsible for his death to justice.

We'll talk later.

Sincerely,

Captain** David Anderson**

Alliance Military Consultant to the Human Embassy

Citadel Station, Presidium

PS- I've attached the Corporal's case file to this message. I hope it can help.

File: Service Number 7723-ND-4586 (Inactive)

Corporal Richard Leroy Jenkins was born in the year 2159 CE in the Capital of **Eden Prime**, **Constant**. Enlisted in the Alliance Marine Corps 2178 CE. Began career education at the Recruit Training Depot in **Constant**, **Eden** **Prime**. Was certified proficient with the standard-issue M7 Lancer assualt rifle and light to standard-weight combat hardsuits upon graduation 2179 CE. Assigned rank Private 2nd Class 2179 CE. Completed certification in zero-gravity combat situations aboard the Rakesh Sharma Orbital Platform on Earth's geosynchronous orbit 2179 CE. Completed Hostile Environment Assault Training at Fort Gunning on Europa, Jupiter's moon 2179 CE.

Assigned to the 97th Marine Division of the Alliance Fifth Fleet 2180 CE. Assigned rank Private 1st Class 2180 CE. Served with distinction on Agebinium during Incident 373-F 2182 CE. Assigned rank Corporal 2182 CE. Upon the request of one Admiral Stephen Hackett, assigned to the crew of the SSV Normandy 2183 CE. Military Vocational Code is B4. KIA on **Eden Prime** during [redacted] 2183 CE.

* * *

><p><strong>Captain Anderson is a rejected Alliance Spectre candidate. Recently assigned as an assistant to the Human Ambassador Donnel Udina on the Citadel. Currently using his personal computer for effects. Until he receives an encrypted console for use, the Broker wants you to continue monitoring his incoming and outgoing messages for any information of import. Report any findings you get to me at the end of the next galactic week. Operative Majoris out.<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**So a fun new thing I think I'm going to start doing is codex entries! With some of the changes Shield is finding in deh ME Universe, we'll probably find that some of them can only be clarified outside of the current narrative. And what better way to learn about these things than through insights into the activities of one of the most omniscient beings in the Galaxy! E****xpect their quantity, quality, and topics to vary. Also, I'm kinda now regretting separating the internal thoughts of our POVs from the regular narratives. Hard to discern what should be third-person or first-person. But I'm in too deep to stop doing it now. ANYWAYS-**

**In other news, expect weekly updates. Shit's hard yo. I love writing this adventure almost as much as reading it (proof reading the same thing over and over though does kinda wear on ya) but school does take away large chunks of my life. So I'll try to get these out as soon as I write em.**

**And no, I won't apologize for the alliteration. **

**In the Next Chapter: Shore Leave!? Time to Party Hardy! Tall tales, Sightseeing and...wait...side missions? Ewwwww.**

**Tune in next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


	15. The Keener, Khalisah, and Kahoku

I buckled the last strap into place and took a look at myself in the bathroom mirror.

_Hm._

I slowly began to turn around, looking over my shoulder, continuing my inspection.

_Hmmmm._

I stopped after I completed my rotation. I gave a nod of approval at my reflection.

_Not bad._

I raised my shoulders and let them fall back down. The suit was definitely heavier than the one I had been wearing since Eden Prime. I didn't find the color scheme to be in good taste either. But it was new. And apparently made with the finest materials and TLC available. I thanked the lord that Shepard didn't confiscate it from me.

"What's that?" she had asked. "Uh, just some armor I found," I responded. Kaidan had been eavesdropping and decided to explain in further detail. When Shepard grimaced, I totally had thought she was going to take it for herself. Thankfully though, she just decided to turn around and walk away.

I looked up at a corner of the bathroom's ceiling. I had given Kaidan a faux smile after that and then immediately rushed to my locker and put it in, officially claiming it. Wearing it now, I felt a little weird. I felt like I was betraying my original hardsuit. Like I was abandoning it.

_I did wake up with the Onyx. And we've already been through so much together. It's like the first thing I saw. And it saved my life in the Space port of Eden Prime...hm. And what else? I was wearing it when I got flung around by Shepard. Faced the Council with it in style. The firefights in the clinic and alley way. Couldn't forget those. Therum. Damn that's a lot of shit._

I looked down to where it lay on the bathroom floor. I was originally planning to sell it but after realizing all that we've been through, I couldn't just abandon the poor thing now. I picked it up and exited the bathroom, making a beeline for the Normandy's elevator. Once down in the garage, I walked over to my locker and threw it in. I stood there for a second, then bent back down and got my pistol from the locker too.

_Can't forget the gun. Definitely need that at all times here._

I let out a deep breath and walked back over to the elevator. Now I just needed to catch back up with the rest of the crew. About a half-hour had passed since we had docked. The Non-Alliance Personnel-

_Aka Wrex, Tali, Garrus, Liara and...oh...that's it._

-had been the first ones to exit the ship. They had the least amount of stuff to grab before doing whatever they had planned to do for shore leave. I knew Garrus was planning to visit his ol' stomping ground of C-Sec and that Tali was going with him, as she apparently still needed to get officially registered on the Citadel. She hadn't exactly been able to get around to it back when all those mercenaries were still after her. I remember getting that done when we arrived the first time. It was unpleasant to say the least.

I pushed the elevator's button.

I had no idea what Wrex and Liara had planned to do today. The rest of the Normandy's crew though were still packing up. While some had been a little more eager to leave, others were still packing their bags and other personal effects for their time off. And it worried me a little bit because I thought everyone would still just be 'living' on the ship.

_Are we not able to come back aboard the ship once we leave?!_

I decided I would just roll with whatever the case was regardless. It would sort itself all out. I luckily did know that Shepard and the two token Humans still hadn't left when I had made the decision to change into my new armor. Although I'm sure they had already left now, I hoped I hadn't fallen too far behind.

As the elevator door slid open, I found myself walking into a group of three Alliance officers. They all turned their eyes upon me with my interruption. I recognized the two on the left as engineers from downstairs. Didn't talk to them much but I've seen them around. The man to their right though I was unfamiliar with. He was dressed in an officer's uniform, and had the disheveled look of someone who hadn't gotten sleep in days. He still seemed to carry an air of authority with him though. Or superiority.

_He's obviously an Alliance officer. And we just docked. Which means...this could be the Admiral who inspects the ship! ...Kahoku! No wait-that other dude! What's his face. Rear Admiral-_

"-Mikhailovich. And I assume you're one of the non-personnel that was brought aboard this vessel."

"Shield. Marauder Shield," I replied extending a hand, albeit cautiously. The dude was out for blood. I didn't want to accidentally give him any ammo he could use against Shepard once he finished his inspection.

_Of course this means that Shepard should still be waiting just outside the ship too! Yes! Not too late!_

He eyed my hand before turning to one of the techies. "Can one of you two show me where the ship's engineering department is? I'd like to see the ship's drive core." One volunteered and led him into the elevator. Once they were gone, the other engineer turned to me. "What an Ass."

* * *

><p>I waved to Shepard upon exiting the air lock. She raised an eyebrow at my approach.<p>

"Where have you been?"

"Just finishing some last minute stuff," I replied cryptically. Not that there was a reason to.

"You didn't happen to have run into anyone on your way out did you?" she probed.

"Just Rear Admiral Mikhailovich. Seemed like an alright guy," I joked.

"Really? Because he seemed like an ass," Ashley snidely remarked. It seemed to be a common opinion.

"...Have you guys just been out here waiting for him to finish his inspection?"

"Yes. It shouldn't be much longer now," Shepard said optimistically.

"Right."

I stepped onto the actual dock and turned around to face the Normandy's airlock too. Ashley subtly turned her head to look at me. Her eyes moved up and down my body.

_...Is she...is she mirin'?_

"See som-"

"What's up with your armor?"

The question took me by surprise. "…What? What's wrong with my armor?" I looked down at it to see if anything was out of place. But it looked exactly as it did when I put it on.

"Your chest piece looks bizarre. Why is it sticking out so much?"

"I noticed that too," Shepard added. "It's unusually large for an Alliance combat suit."

"I mean unless there's a generator in there, you think they would have noticed it would be a little over sized for what the average marine is used to wearing," Ashley concluded.

_What are they talking about._

I looked back down at my armor. It looked fine to me.

"It might be because it wasn't exactly tailored for him."

I raised an eyebrow quizzically at the LT. "Whatcha talkin' about Kaidan."

"I think the man who gave it to him mentioned the armor wasn't exactly designed for regular marines."

_What are you talking...Ohhhhh. Oh noooooooo._

"What do you mean?" Shepard asked him.

"IIIII think what he meant was that they were probably going for an aesthetic look here. You know, puff out the chest for intimidation."

Shepard looked at me then back at Kaidan.

"It's designed for women."

_:(_

"What?" Ashley asked as if she hadn't just heard.

"The space is for…a bust?" the Commander said connecting the dots.

"Bingo," he replied grinning. Ashley burst into laughter.

"Huh. Suits you," Shepard said cattily.

_:(_

Ashley was still giggling by the time the Admiral exited the ship. Surprisingly, Liara followed him out. Guess she had still been on the ship after all. She continued to walk around to our group after the Admiral had stopped several feet away.

"Commander. I am not happy."

"Sounds like a fairly common situation," Shepard deadpanned.

"Commander, I suggest you secure your mouth. It's going to get you in trouble."

_Ooooooh snaaaaap, shit's about go dooooooown._

The Admiral immediately began listing his complaints. "Who designed that CIC? Putting the Commander aft of everyone else is inefficient. What if he needs to discuss with the operators toward the bow?"

Shepard's response was lightning quick. "There are no amateurs on this crew. They know to keep idle chatter minimized during combat. And I can shout with the best DI's."

"A fair point. I guess the design has no chance of becoming standard. No need to worry about a generation of recruits learning things ass-backwards. But I have to shake my head at that drive core of yours. A hundred twenty billion-"

_BILLION._

I tried to wrap my head around that much money.

"-credits worth of element zero to make this thing able to move without giving itself away? You realize we could make drive cores for twelve thousand fighters with that money?!"

He acted like Shepard had commissioned the ship herself, and built it with her own two hands. Not exactly her fault the Alliance decided to build the best warship the Galaxy had ever seen.

_And twelve thousand fighters. A hundred twenty billion divided by twelve thousand would be….10 billion per fighter. Jesus. That's still TOO DAMN HIGH._

"And what good is it to hide for a few hours anyway?! Useless!"

Kaidan and Ashley turned to Shepard to see what she would say next.

"MEN with limited vision said the same thing about early spacecraft, biotics, and the Alliance itself."

_Ooooooh snap! Someone get some aloe vera up in hereeee!_

"There's two ways I could take that Commander, but that is true. I'm sure though that the first frigates produced worked much better than this thing. And we need to talk about your crew Commander."

"What about it."

"I read the roster. Krogan? Asari?...TURIANS?! What are you thinking Commander?! You can't just allow alien nationals free access to Alliance equipment!"

Although I was standing behind her, I could still tell she was about to go for his throat. Her face was practically twitching with rage.

"I'm the Normandy's Commanding Officer and the regs state that I have the authority to say who does and who doesn't come aboard. If you disagree, send a complaint up the chain of command."

_That was….that was incredibly tame for her. What the hell?_

"Sophistry Commander. You know I'm right. You want them on board that bad though? Fine. Just don't quote regs at me. Do you have anything else to say Commander? Any other justifications for the state of this vessel?"

"We showed the Council something they haven't thought of with our fighter carriers. You may disapprove of the Normandy but she's just another way we're out thinking them."

_Except that the thing was helped built by said Council races. Or just the Turians. But my point remains valid!_

I almost had half a mind to interject but I knew better by now than to interrupt Shepard's conversations.

"That assumes the Normandy's technologies can become practical in the future….. I'm not convinced the Normandy ISN'T a waste of taxpayer money-

_You're telling me taxes paid for this shit?! 120 billion credits!? HOW-_

"-but I am convinced that you believe otherwise. And that you'll use it to your best ability. I'll be submitting a report to the joint military council. It will not be as….negative as I had planned. Good hunting Commander Shepard. Don't let us down."

He saluted. The Alliance soldiers returned the gesture. He then gave us a nod and made for the elevator at the end of the dock. Shepard turned around to face us. She stared at Kaidan in particular.

"...what was his name again."

"Uh...I think it was Rear Admiral Mikhailovich. Ma'am."

Shepard's face suddenly turned sinister. "Mikhailovich." She said it with such poison, she practically spat the name. "...I don't know where. And I don't know when. But he's going to regret this moment. I guarantee it." She turned back to the rest of us. "Let's go."

I practically shit my pants.

* * *

><p>The elevator ride down was a lot less eventful. Not a word was spoken. We just listened in silence to the news reports that played over the elevator's radio. Speculation of the next Human colony going to be attacked, a sharp rise in the use of omni-gel in Council space, the induction of the first Human Spectre and yadda yadda. It was only when we had just taken our first steps off the lift that we found trouble again.<p>

"Commander? Commander Shepard? Khalisah bint Sinan-Al Jilani, Westerlund News."

_How many side missions are there from the ship to the Presidium..._

I came to terms that the day might pass a little slow.

"What's with the name? You a practicing Salarian?"

_Oh my god...What?_

"Wha-What? No! It's Arabic! What kind of-...(ahem). Would you be interested in answering a few questions for our viewers?"

"Not in the mood Miss...Al Jilani."

It might have been just me, but it sounded like she said the name with a lot of contempt.

"People back home have heard a lot of wild stories about you Commander. I can give you the chance to set the record straight. What do you say?"

Shepard stared her dead in the eyes. "Fine. Just make it quick. I have places I need to be."

"Oh, don't worry Commander. This will be over quickly." I glanced nervously at Shepard.

_Girl. You better hope not._

Khalisah clicked some buttons on her omni-tool and the camera hovering over her shoulder came to life. A light flicked on and it started rolling. "Humans have been trying to get the respect of the galactic community for twenty six years. With that in mind, what are your feelings on being the first Human Spectre Commander?"

"We all know it should have happened years ago. It almost did if it hadn't been due to alien supremacists. But with my induction, I hope the Council now realizes that we won't sit at the kids' table forever."

"Wow. Are you telling us that there was a Human candidate being considered to join the Spectres before you?"

"Yes, although I'm not at liberty to say more."

That couldn't have been good to mention. Anderson probably wasn't going to like that at all. The reporter continued with what was quickly becoming an alien smear piece. "Alright. Let's continue with your last comment. Some believe that without firm action on our part, the Council will continue to treat us with 'poor relations'. Have you encountered any situations where the Citadel asked you to place its needs before the needs of Earth?"

"I think they know not to ask me to work against my own people."

"I think our viewers will be glad to hear that Commander. It's also rumored you've been given command of an advanced Human warship for your missions. Is there anything you'd like to say about it?"

"The Normandy is a triumph of Human engineering. Like our development of fighter carriers, it shows other races that we're able to think 'outside the box.' "

_But it wasn't! The Normandy was only made with the help from Turians you racist-_

Or was it speciest?

_-Tool!_

"That's gratifying. Many defeatist officers claim that the Alliance can't compete with the naval power of, say, the Turians. Do you think it was appropriate to hand Earth's most advanced warship over to the Citadel?"

"Miss Al Jilani, do I look alien to you? If you haven't noticed, I still wear the Alliance uniform. And if you think anyone other than me says where the Normandy goes and what it does, you're sadly mistaken."

"No offense intended Commander. I'm sure you have to follow the orders of your superiors. Of course, now your superiors are aliens."

_Hoh! Oh no she didn't!...Wait!_

I opened up my omni-tool discretely and activated the holo-cam feature as fast as I could.

_Thank god for that manual! I need this on tape. I can't believe I almost missed it..._

"One last question Commander."

...A_ny second now._

"Rumors back home say you're tracking a 'rogue Spectre' named Saren. Do you have any comment on that?"

"For a long time, the Council sat on their hands with regards to Saren. I have to wonder where their thumbs were."

_..._

"Strong words. It's a good time for strong words."

...

"Good luck with your mission." The camera's light flickered off. "...And thank you for your time Commander Shepard."

_...no. what? no._

The reporter turned to walk away with her little camera zipping behind after her.

_Shepard's straight renegade. She can't meet Al Jilani and NOT punch her. NO. _

The moment had passed though. I dropped my head in disappointment and slowly turned off my holo-recording. Then I heard Shepard speak.

"Hey Jilani."

I looked back up to see Shepard jogging to catch back up with the reporter.

"Yes-"

SMACK. Her body hit the floor with a thud.

"I think everyone's had enough of your snide insinuations."

_AW._

She turned to the rest of us standing who were all standing with our mouths ajar. "We should go."

* * *

><p>The Massacre reported on Torfan. The nickname of the Butcher. Apparently both were given to Shepard by one Miss Al Jilani. That was certainly a shock to hear. And it seemed the rest of the crew agreed. As soon as she heard that, Ashley had gone all 'Serves her right then!' while Kaidan on the other hand, was all like 'But was that really necessary?' And Shepard had gone 'Hell yes.' Then she dismissed the whole affair and assigned us our tasks. Shepard determined that her, Kaidan, and Liara would report to Anderson on our most recent mission and find out where to go next. Ashley and I were apparently being sent to find Admiral Kahoku, and notify him of the death of his marines. Which I was glad to.<p>

Not telling him about his dead marines part of course. No, that would suck. But being given the opportunity to actually make my first real difference. I was going to save his life. Cerberus wasn't going to be assassinating any Alliance Admirals on my watch.

_But for how long with a warning would he stay safe? And how would I even convince him?_

'Fuck it' I told myself, 'I'll think of it on the fly.' Then I told Ashley the Admiral was probably hanging around the Citadel tower somewhere and we should look there first. She thought it couldn't hurt and now here we were, riding the elevator up. I hadn't really talked to her since she had modded my gun for me and so far, we had ridden the lift up in complete silence. It was pretty awkward. I decided to try a conversation.

"So..."

"What?"

I racked my brains for a question. "I was just curious...when did you first join the Alliance?"

It was a genuine question. I actually had no idea. It wasn't like that time when I had asked Kaidan a loaded question back on the Normandy to get him to talk about BAaT. I still kind of felt weird about that. Like a Facebook stalker or something.

_Having all this information about their lives at my finger tips and I'm just using it to make them like me...so weird-_

"Ugh, that feels like forever ago. I was sixteen when I joined so..." She started counting her fingers doing the math in her head. I was a little more caught up in the fact though that-

"You joined the Alliance when you were SIXTEEN?!" I was probably a little too surprised. But damn.

_That's sooooo young._ _For the military anyway._

"Yup. It must have been the year 2174 when I enlisted."

"How old are you now?" I asked absent-mindedly. I regretted opening my mouth as the question left it.

_It's 2183. Do the math. She's like twenty-something. Why did you ask that? Idiot._

"Didn't your mother ever teach you it's impolite to ask a girl's age?" Ashley teased. I'm pretty sure my face was turning red because she started to grin. "If you really must know, I just turned twenty five."

"Oh really? Then Happy Belated Birthday...wish I had gotten a card."

"Thanks."

Then she leaned against the elevator's glass paneling and looked out. She suddenly seemed to get a thousand yard stare. Lost deep in thought. "You know...back then? I was eager to join the Alliance. Enlisted as soon as I got out of high school." She didn't seem to be talking to me in particular. "You should have heard my dad when he first found out. He was furious with me. We must have argued the entire day over it." She paused. "But right before dinner, you know what he said to me? He told me 'I don't know whether to be proud or angry. But if this is really what you want, I support you.' " She gave a half-hearted laugh. "That was dad for you. The most stubborn man alive until he had to go up against his girls. We were all just as hotheaded as he was. Prime examples of an unstoppable force meeting immovable objects."

I stood there in silence, waiting for her to continue. Something was obviously wrong here. But now she just stood there silently, staring at the Presidium below us. Something was bothering her. This conversation took a really weird turn somewhere.

…_..What would Shepard do?_

"...Ashley...are you alright?"

She took a deep breath and turned to face me. "Sorry. Didn't mean to get all touchy-feely there. Just remembering when I first enlisted...it brought back a memory of him." She took another breath. "Today's the day he passed away."

_Oh shit..._

I didn't know what to do. This was literally coming out of nowhere. And I wasn't a grief counselor. I didn't know what to say. I didn't even know if we were close enough friends for me to pat her on the back.

_Well...at least say something man!_

"Oh my god. I'm so sorry," I ended up just pathetically whispering.

"Hey, it's not your fault he died."

..._Thaaaat's can't be a healthy joke to make._

The elevator doors slid open. "Come on," she said. "We got a job to do." I almost opened my mouth to protest. I felt like I should probably follow up on what the hell just happened. But I just mouthed "Right," before following her out.

* * *

><p>We found Admiral Kahoku in the same spot as before. I guess he came to this particular console often.<p>

"Admiral?"

He slowly turned around to face us. "To whom do I-oh! Correct me if I'm wrong but weren't you part of Commander Shepard's detail?"

I'm surprised he recognized me. "Oh, Yeah! Nice to see you again Admiral."

"Same to you...you wouldn't happen to have any word on my missing men yet would you?"

"Uh...yeah. Actually we do." I scratched my neck and looked away. I didn't know how to break it to him.

He stood there in shock. "Oh no..."

Looks like I had already told him. In the worst way possible. "I'm so sorry Admiral. We found them on Edolus. We believe they had been checking an Alliance distress beacon when they were ambushed by a thresher maw."

"A…a thresher maw? But that's not-why was there a beacon placed in the middle of a thresher nest!"

"We don't know...but we suspect foul play. It looked like someone placed it there on purpose," Ashley responded.

"...Dammit. I had a bad feeling since they all disappeared. An Alliance beacon used as bait, my unit wiped out, and nobody seems to know anything about it! Marines, I appreciate you bringing me this information. Give my regards to the Commander for her help. Now I just need to do my part. The families of those marines need to know the reason why they died...Thank you again." He began to walk away.

_NO! NOT YET!_

"Admiral! WAIT!" I said a little loudly. He stopped in his tracks and turned back around perplexed.

"What is it?"

"We'll find out what happened to your marines for you. You...you don't need to do anymore investigating. What you're looking for...it's...it's going to get you into trouble." I tried to make myself sound as concerned as I could. I still think I inadvertently came across as a little threatening though.

"What do you mean by 'trouble'?"

Ashley joined in. "Yeah, good question."

I started to get a little frustrated. "Look. I've had a sketchy past Williams. You know that. But I'm with the Normandy now. And I want to make up for it all by helping Shepard and the Alliance." I turned to Kahoku. "And that means by keeping you safe Admiral. If you go down this road..." My voice dropped to a whisper. "...Cerberus will-"

"CERBERUS!?" he hissed through his teeth. "They're involved in THIS?! How do you know!?" He got the look of a mad man.

_Shit...why did I say that. So many better ways to have done this...why didn't I think this through. Why did I say that. Shit._

"I…I know a lot of things I probably shouldn't." Looking into his eyes as I said it, I found that they burned with an intensity that almost scared me.

_His eyes are scary...scary eyes….who else has scary eyes….(gasp) someone who has eight of them! The Shadow BROKER!_

The answer to everything.

"What the hell is Cerberus?" Ashley joined in whispering too, taking the hint something big was going on.

"Doesn't matter," I replied turning back to Kahoku. "What matters is that YOUR life will be in jeopardy if you push your digging Admiral."

He continued his furious whispering. "Is that threat? You can't just expect me to drop this! We have to take action. They're rogue. If you've heard of them, you know how dangerous they are! If we don't stop them-"

"Alright! Alright. I'm on your side Admiral. If you won't give this up, there's one option. Talk to Barla Von on the Presidium. Ask him for whatever information he has on them. And while there, ask for their protection and safe asylum too."

"The Shadow Broker? Why would he do any of that?"

_Uh good question._

"Because you'll tell them that if you're given the information, you'll send it to Shepard. And whatever information she obtains from the stuff you sent, you'll tell them she'll send it right back to the Broker as payment."

"Uh, you're just gonna include the Commander in your little scheme just like that? Without even asking her?"

"This is bigger than you think Ash," I snapped back at her. "Once she learns what's at stake, she'll help no questions asked."

Kahoku thought the plan over. "Yes...that might work." He met my gaze. "Are you sure that will be enough for them to help?"

_Nope. But what other choices do we have?_

"You're right. If it isn't...tell them..."

_I could give him information he could use as a trade just in case. But what?!...There's Tela Vasir...but why would I want to reveal their connection. It would paint him as a target. That would be stupid...The Alliance raid on those Batarians from Keiji's graybox?...might not have happened yet...uh...what else...AHA!_

"Tell them that you also have information on an agent of Cerberus. One Kai Leng." I whispered. I realized three grown adults crouching in a corner of Citadel tower whispering probably seemed a little suspicious. I stood up from where I was crouching and motioned for the rest of them to do the same. Then I continued to tell him what little I could about the dude. Then I finished our conversation. "We'll walk you back to Barla's office just to be safe. And please, just stay safe. Don't do anything that can jeopardize your safety."

"...alright. You have a deal." He extended his hand and I shook it. "I don't know why you're doing all this, but I'm thankful for it nonetheless."

"Just trying to do the right thing," I responded.

"...What the hell is happening?" Ashley said still totally lost.

* * *

><p>Codex Entry:<p>

**Broker's Network on the Citadel**

_Encrypted Data Pad picked up in Bachjret Ward:_

Ketch. The Broker just happened to be wondering why we were one of the last ones to find out that Shepard has just arrived on the Citadel.

Apparently, someone missed the ship's request to the Alliance tower for dock. An Alliance official was already there to inspect the thing when it landed.

And on top of that, Westerlund News somehow had knowledge of it too. They had a reporter to interview the Commander before she even took a step into C-Sec.

This isn't amateur hour Ketch. WE WORK FOR THE DAMN BROKER. YOU THINK HE'S GOING TO LET THIS SLIDE?! WESTER-FUCKING-LAND NEWS KNEW BEFORE US.

WESTER-FUCKING-LAND.

You better hope you can get something for the Broker he doesn't already know. Majoris might be lenient but I can tell you for damn sure the Broker isn't.

I pray for your sake that you can get him some information quick for your fuck-up.

And I hope to whatever god you believe in that you're not stupid enough to be selling this information to them yourself.

_Encrypted Credit Chit picked up in the Presidium:_

I promise you this isn't my fault! Its my usual contacts! They've all suddenly grown consciousnesses and are ignoring my messages! The operator I know in Alliance tower cut off my access to the Alliance docking logs. And the dock hands I've been paying are avoiding me now. I haven't been able to catch them around their usual haunts.

Gellix. I think someone's trying to make a move. These guys have been under my thumb for years. I know Jackson personally and the dock workers literally go to the same bar every night. There's no way they'd suddenly just _stop_ now! And my usual guy in C-Sec, you know the one. The guy that told us about that Krogan Jax's illegal gun smuggling ring? He was found dead in an alleyway! Professional hit! No witnesses that heard anything. No evidence left behind. Nothing! And the investigators in charge are just chalking it up to some junkie! The whole thing reeks! I honestly think someone's stupid enough to be gunning for the Broker! Put out some feelers! I'm telling you. You'll find something! Someone's messing with our network, I just know it!

And I'll get you something as soon as I can! Please, just tell the Broker I need some more time. People willing to give you sensitive information just don't appear out of the blue! All I need is some time.

* * *

><p><strong>Majoris. Apparently the duct rat was telling the truth. I was about to pay him a personal visit before his body was reported found in a dumpster. It might have been a personal vendetta. But I doubt it. Someone might be actually be trying to make a move on our network in Bachjret Ward. I'm planning to report this to the Broker. But I'm giving you these so that you can take a look into this. Probably earn you bonus points with the boss if you find out what's going on before he asks. If you ask me though, I really think its you know who. I don't know if you're in the loop but the Volus recently just sent a request to the Broker himself for info on them. You might not believe they exist, and call me paranoid all you like, but I'm damn sure they're at least involved with this in some small way. I'm sure though the Broker will tell you himself what he thinks. I'll contact you if anything else comes up. I'm out.<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**Did you guys know Ashley joined the Alliance when she was 16!? I sure didn't. If you check the ME timeline, you can actually find when she was born in 2158 and when she joined in 2174. I mean hot damn gurl. Respect. Also, apparently Kaidan joined just a year before her. Looking at the disparity in their ranks, you can really see the Williams' Curse in action. And just so its out there...I know the convo's are almost word for word. I do want to stick to the game's script since its so damn good. Just think of the story as an almost, partly, kinda novelization of the game/AU too. And look forward to the next chapter. I'm really hoping it turns out well.**

**Also, Responses:**

**Wolfy - If you had a PM I'd send you one personally. But I just wanted to say thanks for the advice man, and the compliments of course too, I really appreciate it. If more people gave their two-cents like you, I'd be a happy dude. The Arcs within a chapter are something I'll definitely start keeping in mind, and like you, I really hope my writing improves as this story continues. And I think so far each chapter averages 4700 so I guess we're at a good place. In summary, thanks again for your input brah [and for reading the AN too :) ].**

**Guest - I appreciate your enthusiasm. I know we haven't seen eye to eye and you seem to often flip flop in your opinion of the story but I appreciate that you let me know at least whenever you change your answer. I almost feel like your two different people though. Not that multiple personality disorder is a bad thing.**

**In the Next Chapter: ...Can I get a break now? Oh wait, I have to hear a horrible nightmarish back story first? Aw maaaan.**

**Tune in next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


	16. Remembering the Renegade's Role

"But Shepard-"

"No. And that's final!"

I frowned and put down my drink. Shepard walked away from our table and to Chora's Den's bar with Ashley and Liara behind her. They started pounding back shots. I looked back across the table at Kaidan.

"Wait...I could have sworn she said no to drinking. Didn't she say no to this?"

"Just look at that man."

He pointed somewhere past my shoulder. I turned around to find Joker and EDI breaking it down on the dance floor. But Joker looked like he did in Mass Effect. Photo-realistic. Fictional.

"What? What the-why is EDI-"

I got slapped across the face by Liara.

"OW!"

"That was for earlier."

"What? What did I-"

I stopped to actually take a look around. We were in Normandy's med bay. Chakwas was taking a drink with Shepard on her desk.

I looked back to Liara who had suddenly disappeared.

Then Kahoku appeared behind one of the room's glass windows. He frowned.

I got up to to talk to him but I tripped and my face hit the floor-

-and I snapped awake.

_Woah...Just a dream...God I have such weird dreams._

Although it hadn't been That weird. Definitely not as bad as that nightmare I had after Eden Prime. I shifted underneath my covers and pulled my arm out. I activated my omni-tool and looked at the time. Late. I groaned and pulled the covers off.

Hopping off the bunk to take a leak, I found the ship was eerily empty. No people moving in and out to bring crates aboard like last night. Finishing my business quickly, I went back to the bunk room and latched my armor back on, thinking about what my next move was. Shepard had said no to grabbing drinks the night before. So everyone had just kind of done their own thing. After escorting Kahoku to Barla and reporting to Shepard, I decided to just 'sneak' back aboard the ship and spend the rest of the evening watching old vids-

_Movies. They're called movies._

-before falling asleep. And I didn't know how people in Mass Effect did it. There was no day and night cycle in the Wards, and it's not like they had one on the Normandy. Someone always had to be awake on the vessel, so the lights were _always_ on. I had no idea how people slept well without being aware of the time. Made me wonder how crews of submarines did it back in the 21st century. Looking at the time on my omni-tool though, I could at least tell everyone had probably already started their day. Mostly because it was past nineteen hundred. I had slept way too well.

I grabbed a ration 'snack' pack on my up the stairs and dug into the veggie chips inside as I walked across the empty CIC, a couple crates and data pads strewn across the floor in my way.

_Whoever was doing all this didn't exactly clean up well._

I decided to stop and actually examine the CIC for the first time. While simultaneously eating strips of jerky from the bag, I went up and down the center of the ship, examining controls and displays. It all looked impossibly futuristic and indecipherable. I couldn't imagine actually operating anything on the ship. Realizing I was just wasting time, I continued up to the bridge finishing off the last strip of jerky in the meal, taking a left into the ship's airlock while tossing the empty packet over my shoulder.

_I'll let a dock hand take the fall for that._

The Normandy's VI immediately went to work once I was inside the airlock. "Equalizing interior pressure with exterior atmosphere."

The room started hissing. Caused me to jump.

_GOD. I'm never going to get used to that sound._

When it finished and the doors slid open, I took a couple steps out onto the dock before freezing. Far across from me on the next dock over was a sniper. I legit almost drew my gun on him thinking he was about to kill someone before I noticed the blockade of C-Sec officers to my right.

_Oh god. What's happening?_

Following their gaze, my sight was led to two girls standing on my left. The one who's face I could see had a shaved head and was wearing those weird Mass Effect leather overalls. The girl standing before her with her back turned to me had red hair, a red suit, and a bunch of black guns on her back.

_Shepard._

Although I hadn't see that armor before.

_Must be new._

I noticed a C-Sec officer out of the corner of my eye motioning for me to walk toward him. I was contemplating it until the high pitched voice of the women Shepard was talking to caused me to stand stiff. I could over hear everything from their conversation from where I stood.

"-Animals don't get names...the master's put their symbols on her. Hot metal all over her back. She screams when they do it." She shuddered as she said it.

_What. The. Fuuuuuuu-_

"You're not an animal. You're a Human being. Your parents...do you remember them? What did they call you?"

"She remembers a lot of things...Talitha. They call her that. She...she doesn't remember the rest. Leave her alooone!"

_That's some Gollum shit right there. What the hell's happening right now?_

I looked back to the C-Sec agents who stared at me, jerking their heads, trying to convey that I needed to get out of the area.

"Someone said you were from...Mindoir. What's the last thing you remember?"

I turned back to the duo and found Talitha's eyes becoming watery. "Fires. Smells of smoke and burning meat. Animals screaming as the masters caged them."

_Jesus..._

"As they put the metal to their backs." She rubbed her gun against her head. "As they put wires into their brains." Then she started whispering to no one beside her. "She pretends to be dead. If she's dead they can't work." Then she snapped her attention back to Shepard. "But they Knooow! She hopes they leave. But they put her in the pen. She didn't fight. She was already broken when they put the wires in."

Shepard immediately barked back at her.

"You couldn't have fought them off when you were a child! They were bigger than you. There were more of them. They would have killed you." I thought at first she was being harsh. But I realized the tone in Shepard's voice wasn't exactly abrasiveness. It sounded more like distress.

"She wants to believe that. She wants to believe nothing could have changed. She doesn't want to be there anymore. In the pen, in the cages. Lying quiet while they do things to her." Tears were streaming down her face now. The sight was disquieting. Shepard took a slow step toward her.

The girl reeled back shouting. "NO! She's no good! She doesn't want to be handled again!"

"Talitha. It's alright. How did you get here? Did you escape?"

"She can't escape. They have chains. Wires. Needles. You go too far, they take your brains away. Animals like her come. Animals with guns. They make the masters explode. She tries to fix the masters, so they won't be mad at her. She puts all the reds and purples back in, but they don't move...the other animals take her."

"You were afraid. All you had known for thirteen years was the abuse of those Batarians. And then Humans came to save you. But you still tried to help your...slavers. Why?"

"She doesn't want to see other animals. They're not real. They can't be real. They can't see her. But the animals can see her." She started looking around like she had just woken up. "Then this is real. But it can't be...the wires, the chains, the hitting...this doesn't happen to her. It's another girl, a dirty girl, a STUPID GIRL." She was shouting again. "She deserves IT! It happens to HER!...doesn't it? They see HER so it's reeeal. But she doesn't want it to be real!"

"She doesn't want-" The girl threw her arms up. "DON'T TOUCH HER!"

Shepard stopped her step forward.

She spoke softly. "What happened to your parents?"

"There's...she sees them. They're yelling." She looks up to the sky. "RUN! HIDE!" Then she jerked her head down. "They hit the masters. But the masters have lights and hoses. DADDY'S-HE'S MELTING!" She buried her face in her hands. "SHH. Sh. She doesn't want to SEE THAT! Don't make her look! Stupid! STUPID!"

"I don't want to HEAR that! You survived the raid. You survived thirteen years in a slave pen. You are strong enough to deal with a memory," Shepard told her, trying to convince her. But I felt like she wasn't just addressing Talitha.

"She's not strong! She's Weak and Stupid! All Humans are!...that's what the masters say. She sees them. Mommy and daddy...burning in white light. Melting, going to pieces. They can't even say anything to herrr-" Tears were streaming down her face again. "...They're dead Shepard. They tried to save her and the masters burned them!...Can she stop remembering now PLEAASEE!?"

Shepard took another step closer. "Hey, everything's going to be alright."

"Pleeease don't touch her. She's dirty. You'll catch it."

"Talitha..." Shepard's word sounded pained. "I was there. I saw my parents die too. Die because of me." Shepard choked her last sentence out.

_Is she..._

I turned away from the sight, looking at my feet.

"LYING! You get hit for lying! You get the buzz or the burning, can't be there. WHY ARE YOU ALIVE! why are you. Why aren't YOU like her! Broken! Only fit to dig and carry-"

"Because I ran." Shepard almost whispered it, nearly too soft for me to even hear. "They came into our house. My dad fought them and yelled at us to run. We tried but something hit our house, artillery, explosives." She stopped again. "I got out of the rubble and ran...I never looked back...I already knew they were dead."

"Dead animals can't work. You lose your mommy and daddy...but you don't dig, you don't carry. You stand up...she wishes she could stand up."

"Talitha." I looked back up and saw Shepard getting something from her belt. "This will make you sleep. If you fall asleep, they can take you to a place where you can get better."

The girl stared at Shepard's outstretched hand for a solid minute. I stood where I was holding my breath. After what felt like hours, Talitha slowly reached over and took the pill out of Shepard's hand. She pushed it to her lips and swallowed. Then she looked back up at Shepard with the eyes of a doe.

"Will she have bad dreams?"

"No. You won't dream at all." Shepard slowly coerced the girl into her arms and embraced her.

"She'd like that. It hurts when she...when I remember. Me. But she wants to. Remember...Shepard. I remember you..." Her eyes suddenly rolled into the back of her head and she started to fall. Shepard caught her before she hit the ground and scooped her up in her arms. She then began walking back toward the C-Sec barricade. I shadowed her, staying several feet behind.

"Is she…?" one of the C-Sec agents said tailoring off.

"I got her to take the sedative."

"Thanks Commander. That means a lot. I didn't want to hurt her. It's just-when I see her curled into a ball and shivering...I was there Commander. One of the first responders to the attack. It was horrifying. And she was only six when they took her. Six! Why the hell are we out here if we can't even keep one little girl safe!?"

Shepard responded passionately. "To make people who do these things pay. It's not the severity of punishment that deters crime. It's the certainty of it. Although it's not like the savages out here would even understand that. That's why we have to demonstrate it to them."

"So we clean up the wreckage, shoot the guilty, and hope everyone else learns not to mess with us?! Great…" His remark obviously hurt Shepard, she flinched at his criticism. "I'll take care of it from here Commander. Thank you."

He took Talitha from Shepard's arms and the other officers started packing up their setup. One of them radioed that the dock was clear. And just like that, they were gone. We stood there silently on the dock for a long time before I found words to talk.

"...Shepard-"

"Don't." She stood there, back turned to me, head to the ground. "...I could use those drinks right about now."

"uh-"

She continued to stare at the ground with her back to me, whispering her words.

"Send a message to Kaidan. Tell him to meet us at Flux with Ash."

"I, uh, I don't have his number."

She activated her omni-tool and waved it without turning around. "Now you do." Then she slowly started to move her feet in the direction of the elevator.

* * *

><p>We found the rest of the team already chilling at a table when we got there. Had two seats saved for us. And when Kaidan got the message, he apparently set out word to the entire gang. That or they were all already hanging out with each other. Shepard took a seat between Kaidan and Ashley, at the head of our oblong table. I took a seat in the only other chair available. With the table's elongated shape, it didn't seem like we had eight people squeezed into one spot. Just looking at her, you'd never even dream of what had just occurred.<p>

I stopped staring at Shepard and took a look around. Flux was crowded. We were in what was normally the center of the club back in Mass Effect. I found a lot of the other tables were placed to the left of Flux's entrance. And what caught my eye other near one of the ones near the window? Joker. I recognized some of the crew from the bridge sitting with him too. I half-heartedly waved but I didn't seem to catch his eye.

Deciding to move past him and finish the rest of my ocular patdown, I scanned to the right past the columns of tables. The bar at the back of the club was buzzing with activity and I noticed that the casino above it was pretty busy too. The dance floor located to our right was totally unoccupied however, save for a single microphone stand in the center of it. I brought my attention back to the group as Shepard danced around the question of where we were just now coming from. Kaidan gave a quick glance in my direction.

_Wha-No. Dude! No! That's not it at all!_

He was quickly distracted from his suspicions though by our Asari server asking for his order. I let out a sigh.

"Wow, real menus," Ashley remarked quietly. "Usually you just get data pads."

"We like to hold ourselves to a higher standard here," our waitress replied overhearing her. "You won't find anything but the finest at our establishment."

I decided to take a look at one of said menus lying in front of me. I squinted my eyes picking it up.

_... I can't read this._

It was all in alien mumbo jumbo. I flipped to the other side and found it covered in the same glyphs. I drummed my fingers along the menu's back.

_So...what now. I read English not-_

My omni-tool flashed on.

_-Ah._

I found the edge of the menu was now legible. I moved the rest of my hand over the menu and found the omni-tool displaying a second 'layer' over the menu's selection. Whatever it covered was translated into broken English.

_Oh. Okay. Cool._

Then I actually read the translated thing. Another problem. What I saw didn't exactly look appetizing.

_Nathak cutlets brined in an Asari honey marinade. Broiled guklang with Tummy Tingling Tuchanka sauce. Seared shruck steak. (Dextro-only.) _

Half of the menu actually wouldn't sound that bad if I only knew what the hell they were. I had trouble just pronouncing some of names in my head. The absence of actual descriptions for the food just made it worse.

"Are you ready to order sir?"

I looked up shocked. The waitress was already waiting for my order. I hadn't even heard her take Tali's to my right. I looked back down to the menu and decided I would just stick with drinks.

"And what would you like to drink?"

_Uh..._

There were a million drinks in the Mass Effect universe. Dozens introduced over the game. But I named the first one that came to mind.

"How much is a glass of Serrice Ice brandy?"

_If it was around 50, I GUESS that would be fine. The credits I had scavenged c-_

"We sell bottles here for 1,255 credits."

I would have done a spit take if I already had a drink in my hand. That was a little out of my price range. "Uh no, you know what? That's fine then. I think I'll just get..." I racked my brain for the next thing I could think of. I knew there had been like a dozen mix drinks that was rattled off in the Citadel DLC. And if they exist in the game, I just needed to name one. "Do you guys know how to make a...tasty tankard?"

She raised an eyebrow looking at her data pad. "Yes, and I find our cocktails are a little more sensibly priced. I'll put you down for one." She typed something on the data pad in her hand and asked Liara what she wanted to my left.

"What the hell's a 'Tasty Tankard'," Shepard demanded from my right.

Hell if I knew. I only remembered that Grunt ordered it at the party. And that I remembered it sounding really good. I was still thinking of what I was going to say before our server cut in.

"If memory serves, it contains Irish cream, coconut rum, iced chocolate, and butterscotch schnapps."

_Oh. That's why._

"Oh my god," Ashley giggled.

"Is that even alcoholic?"

_Oh ha ha Shepard. You're hilarious._

"That's the least manliest drink I've ever seen ordered. And I've drunken with Asari," Wrex bellowed across from me. Liara looked up at him concerned before going back to her menu.

"Don't mind them honey," our server said to me before asking Liara what she wanted to drink.

"I'm revoking your man card," the Krogan continued.

"Hey Wrex," I shot back at him. "You know what I'm gonna do? I'm going to order it, I'm going to drink it, and I'm going to enjoy it. And you wanna know why? Because I am a man. And real men don't give a Fuck about what you think."

_Cursing out a Krogan. That was a new one._

I got myself ready to split as I would never survive Wrex's reprisal. He ended up just chuckling. "Looks like someone just decided to grow a quad!" Then he leaned forward to say something else. The Asari server had just written down Liara's order of a Thessian Temple though and interrupted Wrex before he could go on. He just asked her for ryncol.

"Sooo. What did you guys get up to yesterday?" Garrus asked changing the subject.

"Right, you were still with your buddies from C-Sec when we finished weren't you? We just went to the Presidium. Talked to Anderson and Udina about our next leads. Told us they didn't have any. So we're right back where we started." She stared at her fists on the table. She was obviously frustrated by it. But then she quickly added, "But you remember that slaving operation we shut down in Macedon?"

"Yeah," I affirmed. The first mission I _wasn't _taken on.

"Well I got a message from an ambassador on the Presidium before the Normandy was brought to dock. Told me to meet her the Embassy bar. So I stopped by while we were there to see what she wanted. And guess what her name was?...Nassana Dantius."

_Oh. That was the mission she did?_

"Wait. Dantius? Wasn't that the name of the Asari running the operation?" Ashley asked.

"Yup."

"Apparently the entire reason she wanted to see Shepard was so we would help her 'rescue' her sister from the slavers," Kaidan interrupted Shepard.

"Rescue? But I thought you just said the sister _was_ the slaver?"

"Exactly," Shepard affirmed. "Apparently dear old sis was giving their family a bad name so Nassana wanted her gone. Wanted to trick us into doing her dirty work. Which we unwittingly ended up doing."

"Liquefied Turian," Garrus told the server.

"Wow. That's messed up."

"You're telling me."

"So what'd you do when you found out?"

"We had a good laugh and got some weapons licenses for our trouble," Shepard told her.

_This is actually happening. I'm sitting with a bunch of fictional characters at a table inside a night club. This is really going down. Mass Effect. Shepard. Hngh._

I was still trying to grasp the situation when a Volus lowered the mike on the dance floor and spoke into it, interrupting Liara who was now currently asking Shepard about her new uniform. I had to admit I had been a little curious about it too. It looked just like Tela Vasir's. Spectre gear I realized.

"Well ladies and gentlemen," the Volus boomed over the room's ambient music. "I hope you are all enjoying your night as much as I am so far! My name is Doran and I have the fortune to be the owner of this fine establishment. As well as the cook, bartender, and casino manager. The reason I'm up here though is because I'll also be your host for Karaoke night! It's about time we kicked things up a notch!" He made a cute little kick with his leg. "So whichever brave souls wish to come up and display their vocal talents, be my guest!" I was still caught up on...

_...Karaoke Night?_

He waddled off the stage as a Salarian strided on.

"This should be good," Ashley commented snidely.

"Can we expect to see you up there anytime during the night Commander?" Kaidan asked playfully.

"No," she responded, downing the drink the Asari waitress had just brought back to our table.

"Is the great Commander Shepard backing down from a challenge?" Ashley joked.

When Tali's drink was placed in front of her, she pulled something out her pouch and inserted it into the cup.

Liara looked intrigued. "Ah. I was wondering how you were going to partake Tali. Emergency induction port. Clever!"

"Thank you!"

_Hngh._

"...It's a straw."

* * *

><p>"By the goddess, that's awful!" Liara sputtered.<p>

"Keelah..." Tali muttered.

"I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that Krogan have four testicles," Ashley chimed in.

"What did you think quad meant?" I teased her.

"I didn't realize they were referring to their junk," she snipped back.

"So how'd you catch him?" Shepard probed Garrus.

"That's the worst part. We never did," Garrus replied.

"What?" everyone asked alarmed.

"Why the hell not," Shepard started angrily. "What the hell happened?"

"He ran. Blew his lab, took some of his employees and headed for the nearest space dock. By the time we found out, his ship was already leaving. He threatened to kill his hostages if we tried to stop him."

"That's sick," Kaidan said disgusted.

"What happened next?" Liara asked hesitantly.

"You shot him of the sky! Right?!" Shepard asked indignant.

"I tried. But C-Sec countermanded my order. They were worried about hostages, civilian casualties if the ship was destroyed so close to the Citadel."

"But the hostages would have been dead anyway if he escaped!" Shepard reasoned.

Garrus agreed. "That's what I said. But they wouldn't have it."

"No wonder you wanted to leave. What idiots!" Shepard spat drunkenly. She had already gone through seven drinks by now. Heavy stuff. Any normal person would be out by now. But she was a champ and still took another swig from her glass before continuing. "You're telling me they just let him FLY away?"

"Yes. Yes, they did."

"If that happened in the fleet, the captains would never have let them escape," Tali said slurring her words. She was the opposite of Shepard, only on her third cup already sloshed. "Blast them in space. Boom." She emphasized with her hands.

"All they had to do was disable that ship, and stop him from running. Maybe the hostages die, maybe they don't, but at least we stop the bastard responsible for it," Garrus continued.

"Don't you think that's a little callous Garrus?" Liara timidly asked, still sipping on her first glass.

"A few casualties is a small price to pay to stop someone like that," Shepard said sharing her two cents.

"Yeah, exactly."

_You Psychopath. Don't encourage that!_

"You guys can't be serious," I finally decided to interrupt. They both turned to look at me after my outburst. "You can't endanger innocents to just to get one man. You obviously don't let him get away but you don't just disregard the lives you're putting at risk while doing it!"

"You don't even know what you're talking about Shield. You have no experience with hostage situations or extracting a VIP. Don't you even pretend like you could do better," Shepard spat at me caustically.

"You don't know that," I replied.

_Yeah, she didn't. And neither did I._

Saying that caused her to narrow her eyes. Reminded her of how much she actually trusted me. "And how exactly would you tell Garrus to do his job?" Shepard asked scathingly.

"Uh..."

_Damn. How would I?_

"...Distraction? You send a diversion team to distract the guy right? Then get one infiltrator onto the vessel and take him out before he hurts the hostages."

"Because that would be so easy," Shepard scoffed cutting off Garrus from saying what he had wanted.

"You're telling me one professional or hell, that _you_ couldn't do that Shepard?"

She got even angrier with the remark. "No. But how would you even get them aboard genius?"

"Oh! With the fire team! They board the vessel threatening they'll kill the doctor if he kills the hostages. Stand off. The assassin would be on that very ship and maneuver around in the ducts or whatever until he found and killed the dude while they were distracted."

"The hostages would be killed as soon as that transport came into sight-"

"So after that he just disappeared?" Kaidan said interrupting our hypothetical. I leaned back in my chair grabbing my drink, draining the rest of it.

_Whatever._

"Oh, right. Well I've sent out feelers from time to time hoping to find something. And I thought I found something awhile back. He apparently changed-"

"-to the HIERACHYYYYYYY! MAY THE PRIMARCH FAVOR THEEEEE!"

He scowled at the Turians taking bows as they walked off the stage.

"That's the worst thing I've ever heard," Wrex said slamming himself back down in the chair besides Garrus. He placed four mugs on the table.

"Turian imperial anthem. Their rendition hardly did it justice though. It's an exceptional song," Garrus said in its defense.

"Sure it is," Ashley coyly remarked.

"Those earlier acts certainly could give it a run for its money," Kaidan added.

"God did you actually listen to that Elcor?" Ashley laughed.

"Yes. You've mentioned him like four times now," Kaidan replied annoyed.

"It WAS pretty funny," Tali said snorting.

"High pitched: And Iiiiiii will cherish youuuuuuU!"

Ashley did a pretty good impression. Kaidan couldn't suppress a grin. And neither could Shepard. Her face was shocking to say the least.

"I thought the Salarian singer was quite good," Liara said quietly.

"I'm pretty sure his falsetto destroyed my eardrums," Wrex grumped scratching where said ear hole supposedly was.

"Yeaaaah, I could totally do better," I said, slyly taking one of Wrex's mugs at the same time. I didn't have the money to afford more.

"Hey!" Wrex growled. I met his stare and slowly brought the drink to my lips. "Don't you dare."

The Alliance marines continued to debate who had been the worst act so far.

"If I can drink this before you can finish yoursssss," I said suddenly leaning forward. "How bout it's a gift."

"Are you challenging me to a drink off?" he said in his gravelly voice. Then a Krogan grin spread across his face. It was terrifying. "You're on. And if you lose, you're paying for all of these!" He grabbed a mug and starting pouring the swill down his throat. My eyes grew wide with the rate it was disappearing. I immediately got to work and started chugging.

I ended up spitting out the first mouthful. "AGH, my mouth," I said gagging.

"Trying to out drink a Krogan? Rookie mistake," Garrus said nodding his head next to Wrex.

The Krogan slammed his mug back on the table and laughed. "That's burukh for you. Set aflame and served boiling hot. Even real MEN have trouble drinking the stuff."

"Idiot," Shepard muttered from across the table.

I held my hands over my mouth. "Fuck you Wrex," I guttered at him.

"I'll fetch you some water," Liara said getting up from her seat.

Tali piped up next to me. "Correct me if I'm wrong (hiccup), but did you just say a couple seconds ago you could (hiccup), do better than that Salarian sopranooo(hiccup)?"

"I don't think he can even say a coherent sentence let alone sing," Shepard said crossing her arms.

"I don't know. I wouldn't be surprised if he could with how he drinks."

_Fuck you Wrex._

"I totally could," I replied scowling, tongue still searing in pain, a wonder the words leaving my mouth were even intelligible. Wrex took back his drink and started downing it.

_That Salarian sounded like a bullfrog. I could literally make any sound and it would be ten times as pleasant._

"Why don't you PRove it?" Ashley said obnoxiously besides Tali.

"Yeah, show everyone what you're made of," Kaidan joined in.

They both motioned towards the stage.

"Uuuuh, naaaw. Maybe some other time."

"Oh? Is someone...chicken?"

"BAwk."

"What's a chicken?"

"BaWK."

"What are you guys, five?"

"Bawk baWK."

Garrus was lost. Tali was too most likely. Probably didn't know much about Earth poultry. Wrex was too distracted drinking to care. Then Doran came waddling back onto the stage. "Well it's getting to be that time folks. Any last volunteers for wowing us?"

"Oh oh!" Ashley said raising her hand. "He'll do it!" She pointed to me.

_You know? LETS GO._

"FINE."

I stood up, knocking back my seat.

"I volunteer as tribute!"

I expected some laughs from the Humans after saying it but they all just stared at me like I was jack ass. Then I realized they had all missed the reference by about 200 years.

_Not that the delivery was that great anyway. Sigh._

* * *

><p>"And the Chief Engineer said 'That's not my dog, that's a Turian!'"<p>

Joker had to laugh at that one.

"Turian jokes? Alright, alright. What do you call a squad of Turians fighting a spiky headed monster?"

"Friendly fire! Come on, that one's been around for decades," Joker said laughing.

This was just what he needed.

"Fair enough," Gladstone replied.

"Enough of the Turian bashing guys," Josephine whispered. "There some right over there." She conspicuously pointed to the table next to them.

"Lighten up, they're just jokes!"

"Still," Rosey said deciding to agree.

"Fiiiiine," Harry whined. Then he went wide-eyed. "Hey, hey." He nudged Gladstone beside him. "Isn't that the guy Shepard brought on the ship? Maroon what's his face?"

Joker carefully shifted in his chair. The ensign was right. It was definitely Rod. And then he saw Shepard. And Kaidan. And Ashley and Garrus and the rest.

_What the hell. They didn't invite us out with them? _

That kind of hurt his feelings. But he quickly disregarded them as Shield walked onto the stage and started whispering into the Volus' ear. Or where they should be at least.

"Is he going to sing?"

"...Well folks. Looks like we have our last entertainer for the night! Mr. Shield! Give him a hand!"

He clapped. One of the few.

"Guess so."

_Oh ho ho, no way. This is going to be good._

He activated his omni-tool and got the holo-cam ready to record.

_Can't wait to include this in the Normandy's newsletter._

He stood there adjusting the mike before two waitresses brought over a flat surface.

"Oh, uh, thanks," Rod told them before they walked back off the stage. He looked at the thing nervously before picking some gloves off it. And then started staring at the gloves in his hand instead.

_Gold._

He eventually decided to put them on and flicked the haptic interface of the table on. It resembled the keys of a piano.

_Hoh, does he actually know how to play?_

He cautiously looked at them, tapping the keys timidly before drawing back his fingers. Then he clicked some of the buttons above them, activating percussion and random guitar chords. It took all his effort to keep from bursting out laughing.

_Guess not._

"Is he just messing around with us right now?" Gladstone asked the table appalled.

"Hey, give him a sec. He's probably just really, really hammered," Harry joked.

Right after he said that, Shield started playing. Pretty well in fact.

Du du du du du du du-

Du du du du du du du-

The tune was catchy. He kept repeating it and then clicked something on the holographic display in front of him. Percussion was immediately mixed in with his melody. He actually looked surprised with his success.

Bum bum bum bum bum bum-

Bum bum bum bum bum bum-

Bow bow bow bow bow bow bow bow-

Bow bow bow bow bow bow bow bow-

He took his eyes off the keyboard and turned to the audience in front of him.

* * *

><p>Cue 'Commander Shepard - The Song' By Miracle of Sound. Open the song on Youtube, play it in all its splendor, and hell, sing along with it! I know I do.<p>

* * *

><p>*wicked guitar solo*<p>

"Assuming controooool."

Du du du du du du du Du.

Joker looked down at his 'tool and realized he never pressed record.

_Aw._

* * *

><p>Codex Entry:<p>

**The Mindoir Raid and its Outcomes **

**by Eddie Lang**

Mindoir Academy of Science and Math

Ms. Kohlberg's History class

21/05/2179

Mindoir was a small human farming colony located in the Attican Traverse. A small backwater with not of any large significance to the Systems Alliance. That all changed when the slavers attacked 2170 CE. It was found from later reports that the entirety of slavers seen on the ground were Batarians. When the Hegemony was called to testify for these individuals' actions, they merely claimed they were 'rogue agents' acting of their own accord. Whether they truly were independent operators or proxies supported by the Hegemony is still unknown to this day.

They attacked the colony reportedly in the early morning, while most of the colonists still lied asleep. Within three hours, the slavers had entrenched themselves within the colony's battlements, controlling every defense battery and the entirety of the colony borders. Fortunately, the few guards posted there were able to send out an emergency broadcast before the colony fell, alerting the Alliance. Underestimating the colony's assailants, Admiral Zander sent the SSV Einstein and 23rd Flotilla of the Second Fleet in response. Upon entering the planet's orbit, Zander found the carrier's fighters immediately blown out of the sky. Despite the absence of air superiority, he gave the order for drop ships to land on the planet's surface. The Alliance troops dispatched to the ground met heavy resistance and were kept largely at bay on the outskirts of the colony.

Now seeing the gravity of the situation, Admiral Zander called for additional support. His mistake however had already cost them the battle, as the slavers hacked the colony's defense batteries' IFFs. While the Admiral's forces in space were forced to keep their distance, the slavers were able to slip away with whatever colonists that had not been slaughtered. By the time Alliance information analysts aboard the ships noticed the slavers leaving the planet's orbit, the slavers had already escaped into FTL travel. Though the Admiral ordered pursuit, none were caught.

The Alliance marines on the ground of Mindoir saw the devastation there first hand. First hand accounts reported the sight of houses demolished, dead laying in the streets, and the sky completely blotted by smoke. The success of the slaver's raid on Mindoir was a major blow to the Alliance's reputation. The failure of Admiral Zander to adhere to the Alliance Doctrine (not responding with 'overwhelming force', underestimating the colony's assailants), the brutality of rogue factions in the Traverse (namely Batarian slavers), and the escape of the party responsible led to major discussions of colonial safety and Alliance policy to leave only token garrisons in defense. The policies created to address these issues slowly lost traction over time and were forgotten almost entirely by 2173 CE. This led to a rise in Human colonies skirting the Terminus systems to become disenfranchised with the Alliance, their opinion of the organization slowly growing more and more negative over the years.

The failure of the Alliance to protect its colony on Mindoir is a major factor that historical analysts attribute to pirates from the Terminus systems becoming bold enough to launch their infamous attack on Elyisum 2176 CE, known colloquially as the 'Skyllian Blitz.' The failure of Admiral Zander in his attempt to save the colony due to his hubris led to his demotion to Captain. And a large majority of the marines that were on Mindoir ended up leaving the Alliance military, either due to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder resulting from the horrors they saw on the ground, or due to a sudden disenfranchisement with the Alliance for their failure in defending the colony. Although the Mindoir Colony was rebuilt by 2176 CE, much of its original infrastructure had been lost.

In conclusion, while the raid on Mindoir didn't change anything largely in the Alliance itself, it did affect its standing with its peers, including its citizens, its enlisted, and its enemies. Today, Mindoir still hasn't recovered itself from the tragedies of the raid. Many of the people taken then still live on as slaves in Batarian labor camps as well.

**Edward, while your understanding of the raid's impact on Alliance relations was very insightful, you neglected to mention the Alliance policies passed in the raid's response for colonial defenses entirely. So I'm giving you a C+. I'm disappointed you failed to research the most influential event of the colony you were born in and in the future, I hope you take your assignments much more seriously. And use your proper name when turning in a paper of academia.**

Scribbled at the bottom of the paper are the words 'Old hag.'

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**Before anyone goes crazy, I make no claim over this song or intellectual properties. I know for a fact I could never make a masterpiece like it ****:'(**

**The Commander Shepard Song by Miracle of Sound is just one of the many masterpieces this great artist has made though. You should really check out his work, everything he makes is usually a treasure. The song is a quintessential part of Mass Effect, and if you haven't heard it before now, I pity your ignorance. ****With the few lines of lyrics already included in the story though (and even though I don't claim ownership of any them), I expect this thing's basically a copy suit just waiting to happen. But I refuse to stifle the narrative by choosing to abstain from using them! They help make the story more entertaining, no matter the quality of the story itself. So come at me lawyers! (please don't tho)**

**And I really want this narrative to be like I had actually found myself there, without anything to refer to except my memory and wit. The mannerisms, the actions, all trying to emulate real responses. And before you ask, yes, that does mean I have memorized the song's lyrics in their entirety and how to play it. Not gonna lie, I typed the entire thing down from my head before deciding to get rid of it. It was kind of borderline. And I'm gonna toot my own horn a little, I can play the instrumental part pretttty well too. **

**Also, I knew about the specific background missions for each Shepard, but I don't think I've ever actually done any of them. I usually play a Spacer and I've still never run into that guy with PTSD or done the one where a old gang member asks you for help. So I honestly would have had no idea who Talitha was or anything about her confrontation with Shepard if I didn't have the ME wiki on hand when it went down. Which I didn't in the story. So, no idea what that was all about. And Eddie. If your a war hero, he mentions he watched your award ceremony on Mindoir, so even though his grandfather was a cop back on Earth, I'm assuming the dude must have grown up there.**

**This AN is becoming another story all in its self but I still have one last confession to make. 'Shruck steak' was borrowed from the oneshot 'The Peanut Butter Principle' by ElectricZ. Really spot on character interactions and a great light-hearted story. You should definitely check it out if you have time. Aaaaand that should about do it. For now. **

**In the Next Chapter: You got to fight. Fight for your right. To PAAAARTAAAAY.**

**Tune in next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


	17. Flux Follow up

I finished the last note and looked up from the keyboard.

The room was silent.

..._damn. Did I just imagine singing all tha-_

The room broke into a polite applause, aside from the bridge crew and some of the Eclectic Eight who were a little more obnoxious. Someone gave a shrill whistle as I gave a single wave back. I lowered the mike for Doran as he waddled back onto the stage not a second later.

"Please give Mr. Shield another round of applause for coming up! And in a second, we'll have the floor cleared for dancing!" He showed off a couple of his moves to demonstrate.

_HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH_

I stared at him silent until he finished, and then thanked him for his kindness. I also asked if I might be able to make a song request. He told me he would take it into consideration. I then took off the weird gloves, tossing them back onto the holographic synthesizer as I left the stage. I slowly walked back over to my chair and sat myself down. The table was rather silent.

"...what was THAT?"

Ashley was apparently in drunken awe. Shepard and Kaidan were staring at me kinda weird though. Looking back at it, I realized, yeah, the song might have been a little weird. Considering the circumstances.

_Oh. What did I do. I said her name like twenty times...agh...how do I spin this…_

"... I mentioned I was a fan right?...I mean Torfan?!" I let out a laugh like it was a joke.

_What else has Shepard done that would remotely be reasonable for me having a song about her._

"So that wasn't on the spot?" Tali asked curious.

"Uh...I actually heard it from a...some drunk marines on Elysium. The fact that I remembered it all, is...I guess you could say...a miracle of sound."

_Yeaaaaaah. *cue CSI theme*_

I giggled at my own joke_._ Wrex stared at me.

"I think someone can't handle their liquor. Not that you actually had any."

"WREX! I can outdrink you anytime, anywhere!"

"You do realize you already challenged him and lost right?" Kaidan pointed out, sounding a little sober.

"I couldn't physically drink the stuff! If we had a real contest, he'd go down quicker than a cheap prom date."

"Maybe you should lay off the drinks for now," Garrus suggested.

"You can't tell me what to do! You're not my supervisor!"

_Your references are out of control dawg._

I giggled to myself again. They just rolled their eyes.

"You're a grown man giggling! Have you no shame?!"

That just made me laugh harder.

When I calmed down, everyone seemed to be just enjoying each other's company. Shepard was whispering something into Kaidan's ear. Tali and Ashley were talking passionately about _something _on my right with Garrus kind of awkwardly listening across from them. Looking at Wrex, he seemed content to just drink. It was the first time I really felt that our crew was getting along. Then I realized why the table seemed a little empty. I wasn't hearing anything from Liara. I turned to my left to look at her. She seemed to be lost in thought, staring at the table.

"Hey. What's up?"

She snapped around to me looking like a deer caught in headlights.

"Woah! Didn't mean to scare you."

"What? Oh no! I shouldn't have been startled! I was...I'm just not used to being in places like... this." Her eyes wandered around the club, her mouth slightly frowning. She fidgeted uncomfortably in her seat.

"More used to the silence of dig sites huh?" I said putting my chin on my fist.

"Yes...I suppose I am." Her eyes wandered to Shepard across the table. "I just wonder why the music in these places are always so loud. It almost seems as if the people here want an excuse not to talk to each other..."

"Yeah...yeah I guess that could be a reason," I told her. Then I became distracted by a tune that had just started to play in the room.

WHAT IS LOVE?

"The Dance Floor is Now OPEN!" Doran announced from somewhere.

BABY DON'T HURT ME.

"What the hell is this?!"

DON'T HURT ME.

I stared at Wrex like he was insane. "A Classic?"

NO MORE.

I'm glad Doran decided to play it but it didn't seem to be doing anything for anyone, most of the patrons in the club still sitting in their seats twiddling their thumbs. As soon as some of the waitresses of the club got on the floor and started dancing though, then the party started. The throngs of club goers started leaving their seats for the dance floor.

"Come on," Shepard said turning to Kaidan. She had a look on her face I had never seen before.

_Was it...naw._

She got him out of his seat and starting pulling the biotic to the dance floor with her.

"Hey, wait up!" Ashley said getting up to follow.

I wasn't going to miss this.

"Come on!" I said turning to my neighbor.

I stood up taking Liara by the hand. "Oh my-" she started as I took her with me toward the stage.

"Don't forget me!" Tail said popping out of her chair and stumbling drunkenly after us.

Once we were on the dance floor, Liara surprisingly lost her timidness almost immediately. Apparently she was a fan of dancing. She was already doing that Asari head snap while snaking her arms along her body when Tali hopped on to the dance floor beside her, joining in too. Shepard, Kaidan, and Ashley were right behind them, breaking it down in a circle.

_Fantastic._

I looked back to the table to still see Garrus sitting down sipping his drink.

_Wait. Where did Wrex go-_

"Ah what the hell," I heard him go behind me. I whipped my head back to him. I noticed the club goers around Wrex were giving him a wide berth as he started boogying. I almost died right then and there. I quickly turned back around to find Tali and Liara had joined Shepard's dance circle. I nodded in approval before hopping off the stage and walking back to the table.

"Garrus! What are you doing? Why aren't you over there," I shouted over the music, making a gesture back to the dance floor.

"Ah, not exactly my scene," he said rubbing his neck. "And besides. Turians don't dance." He took another gulp from his drink.

"What?! Lies," I retorted. "There's one dancing right there!" I pointed at the alien dancing behind Wrex. The guy was doing the Techno Turian.

_Freakin' Beautiful. _

"I mean, you can't be any worse than Shepard," I added still observing the dance floor. Looking at Shepard move though, I found she really wasn't all that bad.

"I don't know..." Garrus said tapering off.

"Hey!"

The voice caused me to turn around. A cute redhead wearing the club's crimson skin tight uniform was standing before me.

"...hey," I replied back.

"Were you the guy who recommended this song to Doran? We screened it before giving Korb the OK to play and I can only say O.M.G. It's just A-maaaay-ziiiiing!" Her voice peaked as she said it.

"Glad you like it!" I said smiling back.

_Bringing back the 90's to the 80's (of the 22__nd__ century) baby._

"Hey, if you wanted know the name of the song, it's 'What is Love' by Haddaway. Artist from the 20th Century."

"Really?" she said totally bewildered. "That's crazy! I can't believe they had music like this back then!"

"Yeah..." I said tailoring off. Then I got an idea. A great one as usual. "Hey. Think you can help my friend look for something?" I asked motioning to Garrus.

"Oh sure! What did he lose?"

Garrus peered up from his drink.

"Well, it seems he's dropped his spine around here somewhere. And we can't seem to find it-"

"Alright. Alright, I'll go," he said getting out of his chair. "But don't say I didn't warn you."

"Yeah Garrus! Show 'em how it's done!" I told him in encouragement as he headed off.

"Soooo. What's your name?" she asked me.

"Oh...uh, Shield. Marauder Shield."

"Oh my gosh! You were the guy who sang last right? I loved your song. It was hilarious!" she replied. "My name's Rita by the way."

_Well I wouldn't call the song hilar-Oh, it's you!_

"Rita? Hey, you have a sister named Jenna don't you?

She frowned at the name. "Oh her? Yeah. She doesn't work here anymore."

_Ooh. Sore topic._

I looked back to the group. I found myself really wanting to get back to the dance floor. Kaidan was doing something with his hands where he would point at a random person, then clap, and then twist around to do it to someone else. It was incredible. "Well nice meeting you Rita. Catch you around!"

WHAT IS LOVE.

"Oh, you too-" she replied before I jumped away, and back towards the crowd of dancing aliens.

DON'T HURT ME.

"Hey I knew you could dance!" I shouted to Garrus joining our little circle.

DON'T HURT ME.

"I never said I couldn't," he said shaking his hips. "I just said Turians don't." Then he eyed the Turian behind Wrex. "Usually."

NO MORE. What is love-

As the sound of Haddaway died away, the familiar music of Purgatory popped on to replace it.

* * *

><p>Mass Effect 3 – Purgatory, OST fixed with bass boost (Play for that nostalgia and mood setting...or you can just keep reading. I'm not your supervisor)<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Several Hours Later...<strong>

"Wha-," I muttered looking around.

I guess I should have listened to Gary. I must have had too much to drink because the next time I actually looked around me, I was sitting at the bar. Thankfully, still in Flux. Music still blaring.

Turning around, I saw behind my right that a few Asari and Salarians were still dancing on the stage. Moving my eyes across the rest of the room, I found most of the tables were now empty aside from a few here and there. I slowly turned my head back around when I heard him to my left.

"Oh, you're alive?" he joked.

"Unhhh...where did everyone go?" I questioned, tiredly rubbing an eye.

"They all left about an hour ago. Tali had a little too much to drink and apparently made a mess in her suit. Shepard was getting pretty woozy too so the marines took them back to their rooms... don't know where Wrex went though. I thought you were alright until you passed out right where you're sitting."

I laid my head on the counter. It felt cool to the touch.

"Hey Decian, I think we're going to go..."

I slowly raised my head back up and leaned back on my stool to see who the voice had come from. There were three other Turians sitting past Garrus. Two of them missing fringes.

_Gasp. Females._

"Alright girls, I'll give you a call later."

They got up off their stools to leave. "Bye Garrus," one of the girls said as they began to walk away.

The Turian 'Decian' turned to us smiling. "I think Kyra might have taken to you," he said once they were out of earshot.

"What? No, She was just being friendly."

"Nonsense," I said seeing my entry into the conversation. "She was totally flirting with you dude!"

"Listen to the Human," Decian agreed. "I'll give you her number. You should ask her out sometime."

"Chellick, I already told you. I'm on a deep cover assignment. I don't have time for...distractions."

"Laaaame," I said annoyingly beside him.

"Garrus, you need to expose your frame once in a while,-"

_Expose your frame?_

"-Kyra's quite the woman. Although I do find Tandra more to my liking."

"There was a difference between them?" I asked absentmindedly. The female that had said goodbye to Garrus had the same green markings as the other one. As well as the same skin tone. And the same face. With the same-

"I didn't realize your friend there was a xenophobe," Chellick remarked disappointed.

_Oh noooo-_

"I'm not a xenophobe," I said alarmed. "I didn't mean-"

"Hah! Take it easy Human. I'm just busting your quad, as you Humans say," the detective said chuckling.

"We don't have quads."

"Oh?...What? Then how do you reprodu-Scratch that. I don't wanna know."

"Kyra's hips were a narrower and her fringe hooked down," Garrus told me. "You can also usually tell Turian women apart by looking at the curvature of their mandibles and length of their plates," he added. "Although just listening to the differences in their voice will probably help you the most."

Most of his advice just flew over my head.

"Gotcha. Sorry man, I didn't mean to insult-"

"Hey don't sweat it," Chellick said waving his arm. "To be honest, that's one of the hardest parts of my job. Dealing with the aliens. I still can't tell the difference between Elcor male and females. Let alone the Hanar..." He shook his head just saying the word.

"Hanar are mono-gendered like the Asari," Garrus informed him.

"Ugh, don't get me started on Asari," the Turian groaned.

"Don't get him started on Asari," Garrus quickly leaned over whispering.

But my mouth was already opening as he said it. "What's wrong with Asari?"

"What's wrong with-where do I begin?" Chellick began.

Doran just stared at him while cleaning a glass with a dirty rag.

"First, it's the inter-species reproduction. I get why Salarians and Hanar go for it so often. Seventy percent of Salarian males can't mate if they don't have a decent pedigree. And the Hanar couldn't give a damn about physical contact." He made a lewd motion with his fingers. "And that's what it's really all about."

"Another drink please," Garrus told Doran.

"See, species like us-" He motioned at me and then himself, "-we reproduce through physical contact. Same for the Krogan. Although I can see the Asari appeal to them with the genophage and all. Anyway, that's why we have females. Each partner contributes right?" He was slurring his words so much I could barely understand him. "That's not how it goes with Asari. I don't understand the appeal. Sure they have fringes but we're just incompatible. They're just not built like us," he finished.

"It sounds like someone had their heart broken," Doran concluded handing Garrus his drink.

"What? No! That's not it at all," he said defensively.

"So why you don't like Asari," I asked slightly delirious. "Because they're not Turians?"

"No! It's because they're an all-female, and I don't care what they say, all-female species that evolved without a male counterpart. Do you know what that means?"

"No," I replied.

"I'm going to be in the bathroom if you need me," Garrus said getting out of his seat. Chellick ignored him, continuing his lecture.

"They evolved without males. There's no reason for them to be attracted to guys like us. Males. They evolved without a need for us. We're out of the picture. Gone."

"But-" I responded seeing where he was going now. Liara popped into my head.

_Those romance cut scenes couldn't have lied..._

"Dude, Asari are basically Human women with blue skin," I found myself arguing. "They have breasts like Human women for nursing babies. And I'm pretty sure they deliver them the same way a Human women does too."

"Breasts? Do you mean those bumps? And that's another reason I don't like Asari! Every time they ask me 'do I wanna dance?' And I say no, because those bumps of theirs just get in the way."

"I still have no idea..." I said tapering off, getting dizzy.

_Ow. My head. Too much..._

"-and oh. Back to my point. Yeah, Turian women have birth canals too. And I've read up on alien physiology. Like our women, it's a source of pleasure for yours too right?"

_EWWWWW._

"Alrighty then," I said putting my hands over my ears.

"As a race, even between same genders that don't reproduce, there's that presence of enjoyment through the simulation of procreation right? The Asari never have or will have that. Because it's all through their mind." He tapped his noggin. "Get it?"

"Hey! My partner is an Asari!" Another Turian with pink facial markings sat himself down where Garrus had been. "I was eavesdropping on your little rant here. And I have to say, you're as ignorant as these Humans."

_Hey there..._

"My mate and I have an extremely stable relationship. We enjoy each other's company all the time."

"Sure. Like two friends hanging out okay. But are you actually ever as intimate with her as you would be with one of our females?"

"Yes, in fact, I am."

_What is happening. Where did Garrus go._

"And does she say she enjoys it?"

"Every time." The Turian was beaming with pride.

"And there it is. The lie."

"What?" the newcomer sputtered now getting belligerent.

"Why would she enjoy it? Nothing in their evolutionary timeline would ever lead to them enjoying the same type of sexual acts we do. Nothing's supposed to go in! They have no need or desire for that!"

_OOHHHHHH. He was right. All female race. No need for..._

The Turian stood there slackjawed. "But..."

"It's true hon'," our original Asari server said saddling up beside me, dropping off a tray. "We mostly just enjoy the experience of the melding itself. Most of us are aware though that their partners usually want a little more. So any good lover is going to go out of her way to make it a little more enjoyable for their partner. Even if that means stroking their ego a bit."

The Turian stared at her destroyed.

"But-"

"Sorry hon'," she said leaning over me to pat him on the back.

"And that level of manipulation doesn't even touch on how they release pheromones to mind control you!"

"What," the Asari said in response to hearing him.

"I need to...I need something strong," the pink-faced Turian said getting up.

"You can get some drinks right here!" Doran exclaimed.

"Something stronger."

He walked away. Doran started muttering under his breath. The Asari server continued to stare at Chellick appalled with what had just left his mouth.

"Yeah, you know what you're guilty of. I had a female friend, completely heterosexual. Then she started hanging around an Asari. Started making her feel things she would have never normally have felt. Freaked her out. Always used to say the similarities in their femininity were off putting. But by the end of the year, she found her irresistible. Now they're currently shacked up on Illium."

"Yeaaaaah, she was obviously just attracted to her personality. Its why were able to find partners from every race," the server replied with pride. "Most aliens don't need us as partners, but they want us to be because of the joy we bring them when they're in our company."

"But why? You think Salarian or Human females don't have attractive personalities either?"

"Well-"

"There has to be something that makes you so appealing to every race. Something that makes every race, gender, and being interested. And its mind altering pheromones I tell you!"

The comment actually had her at a loss for words. Although I think it was due more to the statement's ludicrousness than its validity. She turned to look at me, then back to him, and then with a far off look, simply walked away.

"Hm."

_I was not prepared for that class of xenobiology 101._

"Hey," Garrus said just now getting back.

"Hey," I muttered turning to him.

"The Asari censor the extranet for this information, I'm telling you!"

"Uh, I think we're going to head out Chellick."

"Oh really? Well nice catching up with you then Vakarian."

"Chellick. It's been a pleasant...surprise. I didn't think you came out to places like these anymore after what happened at Purgatory."

"Oh I usually don't," he replied. "I just dropped by to an informant's relative know they were safe."

_Huh._

"Happened to stay for a drink or two after than and then ran into Tandra and well..."

"An informant's relative? You mean Rita?" I asked.

"What-How did you know that? She isn't telling people about her sister is she?!" He started looking around for her.

"What? No. I just know a lot of things. Things I probably shouldn't. It's Jenna at Chora's Den right?"

"SHHHH! Do you want to blow her cover!? Get her killed or worse?"

"Woah, sorry," I said putting my hands up.

"What do you have her investigating?" Garrus asked now interested in a conversation.

"Sorry Garrus, it's currently need to know. You never know whose listening."

He turned his head around suspiciously.

"Only me I believe," Doran said from behind the counter. Chellick whipped around to him like the Volus had just popped out of the blue.

"You're trying to catch that dude with the illegal weapon mods right?"

"Wha-How-Garrus. Where'd this guy come from?"

"Hell if I know," Vakarian responded.

"If it makes you feel any better, I got that from the Broker," I said.

_Safety neeeet._

"The Broker. Of course. If it wasn't bankrupting to get the information or forbidden by C-Sec, I'd might ask you who's responsible for producing these mods."

"Couldn't tell ya," I responded.

"Damn," Chellick muttered.

"Well, good luck in your investigation then," Garrus told him. I think he was ready to go at this point. But I wasn't.

"Hey, we could help you out! Do a pick up and bring those mods to you? So you could find where they're coming from...?"

"...Huh...what are you...no yeah, that could work."

"And that way you wouldn't have to endanger Jenna!"

"Shield that's not-"

"I've been holding onto his contact information for ages. If you're serious, I could set up a pick-up right now!"

"Let's do it!" I said slamming my hands down on the counter.

"We're in no condition to be dealing with dangerous criminals," Garrus said being the voice of reason.

"You being inebriated will just lower their suspicions even more!" Chellick said enthusiastically.

Garrus might have had a good point though. "What if they recognize Garrus as C-Sec?"

"Oh the middle man they just brought in came from Zakera Ward. He'll have no idea who Garrus is. Although I rather Garrus hang back for support anyway if the deal goes north."

"South."

"I don't care what direction it's done in. Just get the package and get out. All you have to do. You look like you can handle yourself even without Garrus."

"Let's make it happen!" I said enthusiastically, fondling my pistol, cutting Garrus off.

"Great! I'll make the call! I'll tell the Krogan you'll meet him in the Lower Markets."

"Krogan?" Garrus asked in alarm.

"Don't worry Chellick. We'll get you those mods before you can say 'Sorry Asari'."

* * *

><p>The club's music was still ringing in my ears as we passed through the Lower Markets. Despite the time being well into the early morning, the area looked as busy as ever.<p>

"Can't believe everyone's awake," I yawned, nearly tripping over myself while doing so. I was so tired. It was a wonder I could even walk.

"Unlike the Presidium, there's no artificial day and night cycle in the Wards-"

_I knew that Garrus._

"- and as a consequence, business here rarely stops. Most of the residents here work and rest whenever needed."

_Interesting._

"You ever think about life as a civilian Garrus? Being a resident here? Owning a small shop, dealing with things as they come, day to day?"

"Uh, no. I don't think I ever have."

He seemed to be seriously to contemplating the question now.

Such an introspective guy. I had just asked the question for the hell of it. My mind wasn't really filtering what left my mouth at this point. He started to realize this as he was suddenly besieged by an onslaught of questions.

"No Shield, I'm afraid I _can't_ tell you whether or not Keepers need to sleep."

"No Shield, I'm not into _other species_."

"No Shield, I don't think my father _would_ have approved. But he wouldn't have escaped."

"No Shield, I_ don't_ want to remember what Chellick talked about back at Flux."

"No Shield, I can't say I _have_ heard of Omega before."

"No Shield, I can safely say my mother is feeling fine.

"Yes Shield, I have a sister. And no, she's _not_ eighteen. And frankly, I don't know why you're asking."

This game went on until Garrus pointed out our contact and quietly slipped back into the throng of shoppers. I was pleasantly surprised because I had forgotten why we had come down to here in the first place. Once I spotted the Krogan myself, I waved to him and began walking up. He looked grumpy.

"Hold it!" the Krogan with the dark blue crest barked. "That's close enough 'merc'. You got my payment?"

I held out the credit chit Chellick had given us before we left. One of Jax's lackeys snatched it from my hand.

"Rude."

"Its good boss," the Turian said after scanning it with his omni-tool.

"I understand you have something for me toooo," I said leaning in, several inches from his face.

"You shouldn't drink before a tradeoff," the Krogan snarled at me pulling a package from his back. He tossed it in my direction. "It's unprofessional."

"Oh thanks. See you around."

"You better hope not," the Krogan muttered back. "Come on boys, we're done here." He gave me one more glare before turning around and sauntering off with his entourage. I copied him.

"Garrus?"

He emerged from the crowded market.

"...That went better than expected."

We exited the area and took several turns before starting down an empty alleyway.

"Where we headed?" I asked after several minutes of silence.

"This is a shortcut I found back with my time in C-Sec. It leads straight-"

* * *

><p>Codex Entry:<p>

**Spectre Offices**

Camera Access CP-45CD-8598-4857

JB: Commander? Over here. Heard you were on the Presidium. Hoping to run into you.

JS: I'm busy Salarian. Go bug someone else.

JB: Ah, excuse my poor manners. I forgot to introduce myself. Jondum Bau, Special Tactics and Reconnaissance.

JS: And?

*pause*

JB: I was hoping to congratulate you on your induction. Many of us are looking forward to seeing you bring the rogue Spectre Arterius to justice.

JS: _Really_?

JB: Quite. Although in truth, that's only partly why I wanted to speak with you. I see that you have already gotten Spectre class weapons. I assume from C-Sec. They seem to be the basic model.

JS: Basic? They shoot better than any gun in the N7 series.

JB: So imagine if you had an even better selection. The C-Sec requisitions office has the baseline weaponry for Spectres. Convenient if you need them on the go with how its situated next to the docks. But if you really want quality gear, I _strongly _recommend you visit the Spectre Office in the Citadel Embassy Suites.

JS: Is that all?

JB: Perhaps. *pause* But I assure you it will be...well worth your time.

*Both individuals stand still for several moments*

*Commander Shepard gives him a nod and they walk off in separate directions*

Camera Access CP-98CX-7258-4920

*Agent Bau observed entering Citadel Embassy Suites Spectre Office ten minutes after Commander Shepard*

**Agent Vasir is still reluctant to give us eyes inside Spectre sanctum. Requests to allow access to their network have also been ignored. This has cast a shadow on her partnership with the Organization and demands immediate attention. How loyal is she exactly to the Broker? Tag her actions to investigate if the relationship is a facade and simply a means to infiltrate the network. Begin by testing her willingness to comply with the Broker's will.**

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**And dramatic cutaway. I don't even know what happened this chapter. But I already wrote it, and you already read it. We'll just have to accept it and move on with our lives. And I'm aware there are a lot of the ellipses. I refuse to stop using them though. There is a lot of dramatic pausing in this story. Also, youtube dat Techno Turian. But just so you know, the song selection was purely coincidental. I was only reminded of him once I played it.**

**And forget sending PM's this time around, let me just give out some quickies (and not those kinds you perverts):**

**CommSheps - Glad you like the humor man! Hopefully keeps things interesting in between the story's lulls. And it has been awhile since we've had another POV besides Shield. The reason? Stay tuned to find out-I forgot. I forgot to give her one. Oh well-**

**DKM - And I'm making no promises man. At the rate this story's going guys it might devolve into a parody. God I hope not...**

**TMNT - But Yeah, Shield's head is pretty much out of the game. Obviously, mistakes were made this night. Luckily, Shepard didn't bring it up. Or will sHE?! Eh.**

**Lanilen - Although you can see her reaction the song on her face. Silly shield. It's going to be one awkward conversation if it ever comes around. And I totally forgive you man. I'm just glad you got to come across the song! Hope you enjoyed your first time. Your first time is always the best. And is your second, third, tenth, four t-**

**In the Next Chapter: Suggestions would be appreciated. **

**Tune in next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


	18. Back under the Bulkhead

Shepard stood silently in the airlock with Kaidan and Ashley. The faint light of the ship's decontamination protocol washing over them. After standing still for what seemed like an hour, the ship's VI finally registered their arrival.

"Logged. The Commanding Officer is aboard. XO Pressly stands relieved."

She addressed Joker at the ship's helm first. The Normandy and its crew were prepared to set anchors aweigh. They were simply waiting for her mark. She backtracked down the bridge continuing her preparations to depart. Walking by Pressly, he remarked in passing several routes were already laid out for whatever course the Commander picked. She climbed atop her command deck overseeing the CIC acknowledging him. She activated the ship's star map and pinpointed the system of Grissom. Then came the call.

"Come upstairs for dinner honey!"

I paused the game and turned my attention away from the TV.

"What?"

The voice came from the stairs again.

"We're going to start without you!"

I groaned and got up from the couch, stretching my arms as I did so. I was feeling hungry. I began walking up the stairs. My legs must have fallen asleep with how long I had been playing, as every step felt like I had cement shoes on. It was a lot of effort to climb to the top.

Clearing the last step, I turned towards our living/dining room. Our Christmas tree, covered in all kinds of ornaments and lights occupied the room's crux, with a flat screen TV simulating a roasting fire adjacent to it. Across from the TV in the living area, I found our dinner nook to have a number of guests occupying it. My brother. My sister. Grandparents, aunts, uncles, and family friends. There seemed to be too many people for the counter to support. My eyes were quickly drawn rather to the large feast in front of them, where there was enough food to feed third world country. Legs of honeyed ham, an entire fried turkey, bowls of gravy and stuffing, buttered mashed potatoes, an assortment of roasted vegetables, cranberry sauce, various breads and pudding. My mom stood in front of the stove holding a pot roast waiting for me to finish staring at the food.

"Could you be a dear and go grab your father? He's outside on the porch."

"On the porch?"

I looked not to the table with our guests but to the patio doors behind them. I nodded to her in affirmation and started trudging toward it. The conversation of the table roared to life as I passed it. All kinds of talk radiated from it, from the totally mundane to the utterly scandalous. I slid the door open and entered the patio, closing it quickly behind me to shut out the noise. Turning back around, I found the lights were off, the porch pitch black. The black starless sky only adding to my blindness. I squinted my eyes looking for him. After several seconds, my eyes adjusted, and I caught his outline standing in a corner of the deck. He had his back turned, smoke rising above his head.

_He's smoking?! He quit years ago. Or he said he did. That bastard._

"Dad? What the hell?"

He turned around, exhaling another cloud of smoke. But despite how dark it was outside, and the smoke obscuring their face, I could tell it wasn't my father. As I could see one thing, their eyes. Those inhuman eyes. Cobalt. Cybernetic. Alien.

I noticed movement out of the corner of my eye. I turned left to face my attacker, swinging my right arm at them. My omni-blade resounded with a clang against the katana swinging downward, knocking it back. The assailant used the momentum from being knocked off balance to spin backwards and send a kick to my midriff. It knocked the air out of my lungs and my feet off the ground.

Sent sailing through the air, I felt my back hit the railing of the porch. I subsequently flipped over it and began to fall. Looking up to where I had just been, I could see the robotic blue eyes staring back at me as I continued to fall further and further.

And the eyes and the porch I had just been on became further and further. I fell for what seemed for ages. I couldn't bare the suspense any longer. I twisted my body around to face the ground, bringing my arms to my face, shutting my eyes, expecting impact at any moment. And falling. More falling. Peeking an eye open, I found no grass below me. In fact, there was nothing below me at all. Just darkness. Cold nothingness. A vast void. I was aghast.

_This-wait. Is this-_

I was blasted with a deafening scream.

I shut my eyes when the sound assaulted my ears, the unpleasant cacophony that came after it sounding like nails being dragged along a chalkboard. Immediately after I shut them, textures, shapes, images, pictures, scenes, worlds flitted by one after another. The incoherent chattering/screams of long forgotten races accompanied them. The chaotic nature of the message pervaded my brain, snaked through my every though. The sounds and images slithering through my head were too much, and I screamed in horror only to find no sound leaving my mouth.

A yellow star, a blood red backdrop, a black world. Then...nothing.

My eyes shot open.

_A nightmare._

I stared at the bright white ceiling above me.

_Just another nightmare._

I continued staring for several more minutes before I asked myself the most important question.

_Where am I?_

I slowly turned my head right. Chakwas was at her desk, typing away on the computer in front of her. I turned my head left. The rest of the beds in the medbay were empty. I discretely turned myself onto my belly under the covers, and buried my face in my pillow.

_Why was I falling? ...I was falling because Kai Leng kicked me off. The Illusive man was there. Why were they there? Ominous foreshadowing? Because I just ratted them out?_

Breathing shallowly into the fabric of my pillow, I attempted to reconstruct what else had happened in my sleep.

_I...my mom. My family. It was dinner. Everyone was there for Christmas dinner. It's Christmas._

My breathing became heavier. It had been twelve days since I woke up on Eden Prime. I knew that because I counted every single one that passed. And last time this happened...

_These 'dreams' and time are parallel. The first time was the morning after we left the Citadel. Three days after the Geth attack. Three days from when I was last in my room at school. Now twelve days later here and another nightmare. Exam day was the thirteenth. Twelve days later would be Christmas._

I hoped it was just a coincidence. Some freakish dream that had no pertaining to what's going on. Or maybe it's just my subconscious telling me what I would currently be missing.

_That bastard._

Or maybe, what I saw really _was_ what I was missing. Christmas time back home. Winter break, opening presents, seeing my family. While I was stuck here, life was going on as normal back home.

_But I was there. In the dream. Was I really? Did I just insert myself there in my mind? Or was there a clone of me just wandering around? ...Could I be the clone? Or could there be no version of me there at all? If there wasn't, were they worrying? Did they care if I was missing at all?_

I exhaled heavily into the fabric of the pillow.

_Of course they would._

But something started to well inside my chest.

_Did it even matter if they did or not? I'm here. I'm stuck HERE. How did I end up here. _

I racked my brains for literally whatever could have happened the night before I awoke. I was just studying. Sitting in my room flipping through a text book. No parties. No hallucinogens. No radioactive or sci-fiesque experiments I was just waltzing around.

_Wait. I've tripped before. But that was months ago. There was no way in hell it could have done this. And it's nothing like what's happening now...So what the hell is wrong with me? Two weeks. Two Freakin weeks. This isn't a cool little adventure anymore. Hell! It never was! _

Something started to well in my chest.

_...Why can't this just end? ... Because I can't do this anymore-I can't DO THIS. I'M FUCKING INSANE. I see ugly ass bastards wherever I go. I've been shot. That was one of the most painful things I've ever felt in my life. Jesus. I can't put up with FUCKING Shepard's shit anymore._

My eyes started to get watery.

_Mom. Dad. My brother. My sister. My do- Oh my god. I don't even know their names_.

I let out a pitiful laugh that became muffled by the pillow.

_I don't even remember the names of my own family. My OWN name. _

The cushion I was buried in started to become damp.

_I'm never going to see them again. Never going to see the rest of my life. What happens in theirs. My friends, my future, my-I don't want this. I can't stay here. There has to be a way out. There-_

The waterworks started to slow.

_Suicide? Activate a grenade? A shot to the head? What the fuck brain. I'm not a bitch._

Then I put more thought into it. More thought rather into what I was currently doing.

_Here I am. Crying into a pillow. Inside the Normandy. Like a teenage girl. This is what I'm doing right now...what the fuck. Man up. Get over yourself you little bitch. _

I blinked away the last tear.

_We already went over this whole thing. Stop Saren. Stop Sovereign. Then you get to go home. THAT was the deal._

I was right. I shifted in the bed back onto my back and stared at the ceiling.

_Make the best of what you got. You should be currently asking not why you're here but why you're HERE._

That thought got me back on track.

_Why the hell am I in the Normandy? In the med bay...before the nightmare was the talent window and before that...oh dude. I passed ou-_

"I see you're awake now."

I jerked my head toward the doctor.

"Oh...yeah."

"We were worried about you. You've taken quite a few blows to the head since you've joined the Normandy."

"Blow to the head?" I said aloud unintentionally.

"Quite. Apparently someone tried to bludgeon you over the head. And succeeded. I don't know the exact details. You would have to ask Mr. Vakarian, he's the one who brought you medical attention."

I sat up in my bed and did a double take of my surroundings. We were definitely in the Normandy. Definitely not some hospital. Doctor Chakwas saw my obvious confusion and continued to elaborate.

"He brought you to an infirmary located in the Headquarters of Citadel Security. You were left there to recuperate from your injury. After you failed to wake up the next day, it was decided to bring you aboard the Normandy as we were scheduled to depart the following morning."

_A whole day?! What the hell? How-Wait. If I was out cold and already cared for...she could have just left me in C-Sec. Why did Shepard bring me along? Did someone make a case for me? Convince her they needed me? There's no way she would ha-_

"Oh, speaking of whom, there goes Mr. Vakarian now. Since it seems your suffering mild amnesia, you can ask him more about the incident once you're back on your feet."

"Oh don't worry about it Doc, I'm feeling fine." I pulled off my covers and sat upright in the bed. "Thanks for-"

"Don't you dare!" We locked eyes. The contempt she had on her face. How her eyes pierced my soul. I felt myself already shrinking back into bed before she opened her mouth to speak again. "I'm not letting you run off again like you did last time! You were seriously injured and could have hemorrhaged leaving my care like you did. I'm fairly surprised you're still functioning as you are. Although I wouldn't be surprised if permanent damage was done to your memory or cognition with how much blunt trauma has been done to your head. So you'll remain in this room until I deem you fit enough to leave it, am I understood?"

"Yes ma'am," I replied meekly, avoiding her gaze. I quietly laid back down on the cot and slid the covers back over me.

* * *

><p>She read over the data pad the requisitions officer had just handed her. The order for new maintenance equipment submitted by the Gunnery Chief Williams had been approved. She had seen to that personally with the amount of weaponry they had already collected over the course of their mission so far.<p>

The surplus of rations and dextro-protein food appeared to have been delivered on schedule as well. Which was fortunate as Vakarian and Tali had already gone through the emergency rations kept for the dextro's the Normandy might find adrift in space. Even with excluding their food from the ledger though, she still would have balked at the amount of food they now carried if she wasn't aware of how much that Krogan Wrex went through alone in one day.

She continued to scroll down the list.

"and Tali has been extremely helpful down in engineering. The insights she can already make on the ship's systems are simply astounding. I swear, she might already know more about the Tantalus drive core than the rest of my team."

She looked up from the data pad in her hand to Lieutenant Adams. He was sitting next to Pressly, who seemed extremely apathetic about what their chief engineer had to say. She couldn't help but share the sentiment. The meeting had droned on for much longer than she would have liked. The Normandy had already departed the Citadel over an hour ago and still needed a plot for their first course of action. Yet here they all were in the conference room, still discussing trivial matters. Kaidan seemed to sense her frustration.

"So everything's good in engineering?"

"Aside from a small maintenance issue that's currently being resolved, the Normandy's engineering department has nothing else to report."

"Great." She cut in. "Officer Fantum, do you have the expense report for this list? Has everything on it been accounted for?"

"Yes ma'am. Although the Alliance didn't get the medigel Doctor Chakwas ordered for our dextro-friendly crew members in time, I was able to acquire some through my other channels out of my own pocket."

"Good work. I'll be sure they reimburse you. Is that it?"

The four men in the room seemed to nod their heads in agreement.

"Alright. Dismissed."

She motioned for Kaidan to stay as the rest left the room. He had a curious look as to why walking towards her.

"Kaidan. You said you saw him one last time before we left...How was he?"

"Last I saw him, he was doing okay. Not well enough to walk around or anything like that but he was conscious. Apparently Emerson had even been to see him just an hour before me. And get this. You know how Fredericks was always bragging about seeing the Consort? Apparently he never actually had. He only just recently lined up a visit from one of her 'acolytes'. Had it scheduled during his next visit upon the Citadel. But because of his condition, he missed it. Or he would have if Emerson hadn't told the Consort's office about what had happened to him. They're apparently going to visit the hospital tomorrow and do something really special for him. You should've seen Frederick's face as he told me."

"Glad to hear he's doing better."

Kaidan paused for a moment and slightly frowned. "You should have visited him before we left Commander. It would have meant a lot to him."

"Noted. Thank you for giving me an update on his status. You're dismissed Lieutenant."

She knew he wanted to push the topic but he pursed his lips instead and gave a half-hearted salute. She followed him out moments later. She didn't want to discuss the marine. She almost didn't ask about him. His brush with death was still too recent.

"Hey Commander, we have a call from Alliance command coming in. Should I put them on hold?"

"I'll be right there," she replied over her earpiece.

_We're properly equipped. Everyone's rested. Saren. We're coming for you._

"Commander, Ms. Al-Jilani's story on you just aired. She shouldn't have ambushed you like that, but you handled yourself well. She came across as a raving idiot."

"Thank you Admiral.

"Although she did accuse you of publicly assaulting her. While there were no witnesses, apparently she got hold of footage from a camera in C-Sec. It's quality was grainy, couldn't make out much of it."

"Like you said sir, she was a raving idiot."

"Alright Commander. Just be sure to take further care when dealing with these situations in the future."

There wouldn't _be_ any situations in the future with the clear message she sent to the reporter.

"Don't have to tell me twice sir."

"As for the real reason I'm calling. Commander, you're information on Geth in the Armstrong Cluster was accurate. Half a marine division was lost in the process but we were able to clear out the outposts they had in the region. It's alarming they had any at all, let alone four."

"I'm glad to hear the Fifth Fleet was successful in their attack sir. If the Geth had even one of those bases still standing, I can't imagine the havoc they would have dealt."

"That's just it Commander. They weren't the only ones in the region. Once our teams accomplished their objectives, we found that the outposts seemed a little small for the scale of attack the Geth were planning. We looked into it and apparently they still retain their main base of operations in the region. Upon further digging, our scouts found several Geth cruisers patrolling the space of Grissom. We speculate their main base of operations is located in that system."

"And what would you have us do sir?"

_Why did he call? The Fifth Fleet could easily handle a handful of ships._

"Normally I would send the fleet in to mop up the remaining Geth but we're afraid there's a larger Geth fleet waiting outside the system. If we attack, we might find ourselves in an uphill battle. That's why I've come to you Commander. With the Normandy, you can sneak by the Geth's patrols undetected, hit their main base of operations, and get out before the Geth are any wiser."

"We'll set course for Grissom immediately sir."

"Glad to hear it Shepard. Good luck. Fifth Fleet out."

* * *

><p>The Geth hit the floor one after another. Rockets flew over their heads. She released another burst of biotic energy from her hand. It threw the robot in front of her several feet in the opposite direction. She vaulted over the crate brandishing her shotgun and let a volley loose at it. White liquid sprayed from where the bullets made contact. She crouched where she was and spun around. She longer heard enemy fire. She activated her omni-tool and waved it in a circular motion. It detected no other hard suits in the area besides her team. And more importantly for that matter, no other Geth.<p>

"Clear!"

She turned toward her squad who were all emerging from cover, aside from Wrex who had no need for it.

"Wrex! I want you to sweep the top floor for any remaining Geth. Williams, cover his ass! Kaidan you're with me. I have a feeling there's more behind this door over here." She motioned to the locked doorway in the far corner of the room. "Tali, get it open."

"Right away Commander!" the Quarian piped up.

She figured the Geth must have killed the original inhabitants of the building as it was the standard design of practically every structure found in the Traverse, aside from the various Geth equipment that had been moved in. The first giveaway was that the first room was pressurized for those entering from a vacuum. Synthetics like the Geth wouldn't need to bother with that. They had found a single Geth there however that had been in for an unpleasant surprise.

Then they entered the base's main chamber, which was the same as all the others. A large room always supported by several columns, with a series of crates scattered throughout it. The only difference being the amount of Geth fabrications inside it. But like every other standard para-military compound in the region, there was still the staircase in the corner that led to the balcony overseeing the entire room. Usually used by crime lords to oversee their operation and as a convenient vantage point in the event of an attack.

"Got it!"

She had her gun raised as soon as she heard the door let out a hiss. Luckily, they found nothing on the other side. The absence of gunfire from up top meant that they hadn't run into anything either. Shepard holstered her gun and motioned for Tali to access the Geth terminal at the far side of the small room.

_Lucky us._

She checked the other containers in the room with Kaidan as Tali began accessing whatever information was on it. Whatever she found could be the next big step in locating the rogue Spectre.

One step closer to finding the Conduit.

She glanced over to the Quarian when she heard her gasp. Walking over, she saw another Quarian on the screen. She was singing. A crowd sat before her, soaking in her mournful melody.

"Is this really the best time to be watching an opera vid Tali?"

"What?" she said in shock. "It just came on!"

"Really." Shepard replied sardonically.

"I...yes! I getting through some firewalls when it just appeared on the screen! According to the registered comm buoys the signals using, it's broadcasting to several places beyond the Perseus Veil...to the Geth."

The vid flickered off just seconds after she said this and the console's screen once again displayed gibberish.

"Just finish."

"...alright Shepard."

"Commander, we're all cleared."

She brought her hand to her helmet's radio. "Alright you two, meet us back down on the first floor."

"Roger that."

A single minute passed before Tali chirped up again.

"I got something! Some encrypted data files. It'll take some time but I think I can crack them if I just have a few more minutes!"

"Don't have the time. Download them and get ready to go." She turned around to Ashley and Wrex who had just rejoined the group. "We're done here, move out." She raised a connection to the Normandy next. "Joker, get ready to pick us up at these coordinates. We're ready for exfil."

"...Glad to hear it Commander. Was just about to call you actually. The Geth in the area don't seem too fond of you killing their buddies. A couple cruiser sized vessels are headed our way."

"Get here on the double!"

The ascent from the moon's surface was largely uneventful despite their small window of time. After sitting idly in the Mako, Joker brought the ship down and she gunned the Mako into the ship's garage. Joker exited the moon's orbit just seconds later. The only one who spoke as they exited the vehicle was the Quarian who had been tinkering on her omni-tool since they had climbed back in the Mako.

"Shepard! I need to talk to you."

The rest of her squad went on with their business.

"Did you find something?"

"I was able to access some of the data we found on that Geth control node. And I wanted to ask you if I could get a copy of it."

"Tell me what you found first."

"A majority of the files are still encrypted, but from what I've gathered, this data could give us new insight into how the Geth have evolved! Information on how they've changed over the past centuries!"

"And you want to give this information to your people."

"Yes! These files have information that could be vital in our efforts in understanding the Geth. It could be instrumental in retaking our home world!"

"So if I were to give you this data, your pilgrimage would end wouldn't it? You'd return to the Quarian flotilla?"

"Not right away! I'll stay with you for as long as it takes to stop Saren. But my people need this!"

"This is an Alliance outfit. I would have to run it past Alliance high command first."

"Oh...alright. But please, do you think you can convince them to allow me a copy?"

"We'll see Tali." She turned and walked away toward the garage elevator.

* * *

><p>"We're increasing patrols in the Armstrong cluster to make sure they don't establish another foothold in the region. Nice job Shepard. You saved a lot of lives on this mission."<p>

"Thank you Admiral."

"And as for the information you recovered. Our analysts are already piecing through the information as we speak. They strongly believe it will help our efforts in combating the Geth.

"Permission to speak Admiral."

"Granted, Commander."

She bit her tongue. Shepard had second thoughts about requesting permission.

_Giving away vital intel to a foreign race. What was she thinking..._

"Shepard? You can speak freely with me."

She let out a sigh.

"The Quarian crew member on my ship that recovered the information wishes to get a copy of the data. She wants to bring it back to the Quarian fleet for similar reasons."

"If you have no qualms about this Commander, then I defer to your judgment. If she was the one to recover the data in the first place, I see no problem with her keeping a copy."

"...Alright sir."

"Again, good work Commander. Hackett out."

The Quarian let out a squeal and hugged her when she received the data disk. Shepard grimaced at her embrace.

* * *

><p>"Doc?"<p>

"Just me Shield. Doctor Chakwas said you wanted to see me."

I propped myself up from where I was laying. "Yeah, glad you could stop by. Uh, I guess I should just get straight to the point. Last thing I remember doing was leaving Flux with you before everything became a blur. She said I was...attacked? What happened?"

"Glad to hear you're mind's still intact. I don't know much about Human physiology but with the amount of punishment your head's taken, I'm sure even a Krogan would be feeling a little woozy by now."

"Yeah, that's what they keep telling me..."

The Turian dragged over a stool and took a seat besides my bed. "Two Humans tried to jump us in an alleyway. Snuck up quietly, almost didn't hear them. You were knocked out before I was able to stop them. I was able to render my assailant unconscious but that caused the other to pull a gun. I had to shoot him."

"Damn. Well thanks for not letting them mug me. Not that they would've gotten much."

_I have, what, 350 credits to my name after our last few missions? Probably less after Flux-_

"They weren't muggers. Not that I knew at the time. I brought you and the remaining perp to C-Sec. You were put in the clinic and I dragged the remaining attacker to a jail cell. Went to report the incident to Chellick. Before I knew it, someone had paid bail and got him out. I literally turned my back for one moment and he was gone.

"What's weird about that? Who paid bail?"

"We don't know. Someone must be dirty because we don't have 'bail' at C-Sec. Charges can't just drop with credits. As much as I hate them, there's a procedure to go by. But he was let out by someone before an incident report was even filed. And when we checked who signed his release, we didn't even find a log for it."

"Woah. So your saying he had connections in C-Sec? Does that mean you have a mole?"

"Apparently. And while that warrants further investigation, it gets worse. The next day he was found dead in a dumpster behind a restaurant in the Wards."

"Shit."

"Exactly. So I just wanted to ask Shield, did you piss off any criminal syndicates before you came here? We don't exactly know much about your past but if you were in any sort of trouble before we crossed paths, I could help you if you told me."

"...Did Shepard put you up to this?"

"No. And although I already told her about this, I'm just asking for myself. I've seen this happen before Shield. Someone borrows a little too much money and can't pay it off. So the loan shark sends in lackeys to send a message. They make a mistake, cops get involved, and they wash their hands of the whole business. Cut ties. Permanently."

"Garrus, I don't owe anyone money."

_...Not that I know of..._

"Then is there anything else you can think of? Those men weren't just ordinary thieves. They were obviously acting on the orders of someone big."

"...I honestly have no idea who could have sent them."

But I did. Humans working for what could be a conspiracy that spanned even C-Sec? That stank of one organization in particular. One that I had just pissed off.

I forgot the Turian was a trained investigator. Just looking at me he could tell that I was withholding something. "Look. I understand if you don't want us to get involved in your personal affairs. But if this could affect our mission then-"

"I'll tell Shepard about it when I get out of here alright?" He looked up with my interruption. He looked annoyed. Probably with how I was cutting him out of the 'investigation'. "Or hell, she can come in here to ask me herself about it. But all I know for sure Garrus is that it won't affect our mission. I promise."

_Can I really make that promise though?_

Garrus got up from where he was sitting. "Alright then. I'll tell her that." Then he turned around before exiting the med bay. "But Shield. If we're going to be a team, we're going to have to trust one other. We can't afford to keep secrets to ourselves. The mission's too important for that."

"Gotcha," I muttered laying back down in bed. I heard the med bay doors slide close behind him. I stared at the sterile white ceiling of the room for several minutes before closing my eyes. I had been laying in bed for so long that I had been itching to just get up and run about the ship. But at the moment, I felt tired. Everything in my body felt heavy. Everything was just getting so heavy.

* * *

><p>Codex Entry:<p>

**C-Sec Investigations Office**

Camera Access BQ-15CS-7158-0185

DC: Ugh, my head.

*Door slides open. Turian enters*

DC: Garrus? I thought you resigned.

GV: I did. And nice to see you too Chellick.

*Turian tosses object onto his desk. Detective Chellick picks it up.*

DC: What's this?

GV: Sorry, meant to give it to you last night. It's the package you wanted from the Krogan.

DC: Krogan? What are you talking about Garrus?

GV: You don't remember talking at Flux? Setting up the hand off?

DC: Flux?...Oh gods. I don't remember anything from that night. Don't tell me it was Jax-

GV: I believe it was.

DC: Dammit. I wasn't talking loud enough for everyone to hear was I?

GV: Oh no. I don't think you would have even brought it up if it wasn't for my associate.

DC: The Human you brought in?

GV: Yes, who I might add, was attacked afterwards by your thug.

*Detective Chellick is unraveling the package while Turian is speaking.*

DC: Dear god. I asked you to pick up the weapon mods?

GV: They're what you wanted weren't they?

DC: Yes they are. But you're telling me you I asked you to do this? Last night?

GV: That's correct.

*Detective Chellick groans*

DC: And you're telling me the deal went wrong? That you scared off my only lead-

GV: Maybe. The Humans who attacked us shortly after didn't seem like regular thieves. Weren't deterred by our firearms.

DC: Humans? That doesn't sound like Jax. Only hires Turians. Heard him say their more 'professional.'

GV: Well then. That makes things a little more interesting.

DC: Aside from you being ambushed in the alley, you're telling me the deal went fine?

GV: Correct. Exchanged the credits for the mods and walked away, no questions asked.

DC: Damn. I can't believe I asked you to do this...

*Detective Chellick hangs head for several moments.*

DC:...Did I do anything else stupid last night?

GV: Oh, just the usual.

*Detective sighs.*

DC: Well I suppose I should thank you then.

GV: You should thank the Human in the infirmary. He's the one who made the whole thing happen.

DC: Wonderful. I guess I'll have to once he's conscious.

GV: And before I forget, now that you have those mods, you no longer need to put that poor girl in danger.

DC: Girl? Who do you mean?

GV: Uh, you know...what was her name...

DC: Are you talking about Jenna?

GV: That's the one.

DC: I'll concede to that. I'll tell her she's done her job.

GV: Appreciate it Chellick. Catch you around.

DC: Don't be a stranger Vakarian.

*Video ends.*

**Found nothing that implicates us. Continue monitoring both individuals for further developments.**

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**So this chapter was kind of difficult to write. Kind of at a weird transition in the story. Oh right! Before I forget, its the story's Two Month Anniversary! We finally finished Act 1: Throwdown on Therum, and now we move onward, to Act 2: Traversing the Traverse! And although my OCD wish that I got the 20th Chapter and broke 100k for this occasion, I'm glad I even got this far. Thanks for the support for all of you who've been reading and I hope this story continues to entertain. ****Back to the chapter, it's a little disjointed I know, wished I had a little more time to sort it out. Had some ambiguous time lapses between transitions but I didn't want to miss the story's birthday. So here we are. In any case, next week should fare better.**

**In the Next Chapter: Time is ticking. A Fight against fate. Who'll end up on top?**

**Tune in next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


	19. Bring down the Bastards

**2170 CE**

She rubbed the fabric back and forth in between her fingers. The leather felt coarse, like sand paper. She shuddered at the thought of someone wearing it, and the chafing that it'd inflict. Letting the overalls swing back into the rack, she moved on to the top next to it. Regardless of what the shirt was made of, it wasn't even near what she had in mind. She knew that old man Lauren only sold the drab, everyday patchwork everyone wore in his store. But he owned the only one that sold clothing in the neighborhood. Whatever she hoped to find had to be here. And after minutes of sifting through rack after rack of clothes, what little hope she had begun to falter. All she wanted was a dress. One for the dance. A simple dress. One that fell to her feet and was flowery and elegant and...

"Hey! Look what I found!"

She turned to Karen. At first, she felt a wave of envy wash over her as her eyes were drawn to the hem of the mauve dress hanging at her feet.

_I can't believe..._

As her eyes moved up, she suddenly found her jealousy disappear.

_...how ugly that is._

The dress was a two-piece. A horrid one. At where her waist was, the purple skirt abruptly ended, exposing the would-be wearer's entire midriff save for two straps extending from where its edge. The two straps connected the unfinished dress to an orange sleeveless, crop top. The whole thing was as tasteless as the rest of the garbage in the store.

"...wow."

"I know right! I think Jimmy's going to love it!"

_Jimmy would love anything on her. Karen had him wrapped around her finger._

"Uh, I'm sure he would but...do you think your parents will really be okay with it?"

"Uh, I don't care about them. I like it, and I'm buying it!" Karen peered over her shoulder at the clothing behind her. "Find anything over here?"

She sighed. "No."

"Well that sucks. I would suggest this," she pointed to the dress hanging in front of her. "But this is the only one Ralph has."

_Thank the maker. Although that was still one too many._

"Oh...darn. I'm just gonna keep looking."

"Hey, I'm going to run this through real quick but after I'm done, I'll be right back to help you find something!"

She really wish Karen wouldn't. "'Kay."

She continued down the aisle to the next clothing rack. The clothes hanging from it were more drab than the last. Back across the shop, old man Lauren was behind his counter, registering Karen's purchase. The senior citizen was wrinkled and leathery, just like the clothes in his store. She thought most people who came to the store were sadists,as the old man was an absolute terror to talk with too. And even though his entire store was rendered obsolete with the existence of the extranet and anything you could want being online, people still flocked to it. Her parents told her it was because they wanted to support the local business. But she was pretty sure it had more to do with the convenience of it being so close to everyone's homes. That was the reason why Karen and her were there now. Asides from it's extremely cheap prices.

She stared at the rags hanging in front of her. She frowned.

All she wanted was a nice dress for formal. The big dance that happened at the end of the academic year. It would be her first one as an upper class man. Kevin and Jonesy had both already asked to go with her. She had to say she felt guilty with how she was here shopping for a dress when she still hadn't made up her mind with which boy she was going to go with. Neither were Eluam but it's not like _he_ could go with her.

_I mean Kevin's kind of cute..._

And he had _really_ good jokes.

_but Jonesy-_

"So found something yet?"

She spun around at the sound of her voice.

"Oh...no. Nothing yet."

"Look, I honestly think I might have grabbed the last decent thing here. You know, every time I come over, I always see your mom wearing something fantastic! I'm sure she'll let you borrow something for Formal!"

"I already did. She doesn't have anything that would fit..."

"Well that sucks. Hey! You know what? I just got the latest issue of Elysium Elegance! We can look through it for dresses and have one delivered instead!"

She gawked at her, trying to tell if she was being serious. "I honestly can't tell if you're joking or not."

"Why would that be a joke? The outfits in it are fabuloussss!"

"You know I can't afford that!"

Her parents barely gave her a pittance. She had to skip social outings sometimes because her parents' were so cheap.

"Hey, we'll find something! I just know it! Come on!"

Karen dragged her by the arm out of the store, the other carrying the bag that contained the atrocious dress she had just bought. As soon as they exited the store though, she felt rain drops falling on her head.

"AH! My hair!"

Squealing, Karen immediately let go of her and took off. She watched Karen sprint uncharacteristically fast down the dirt road, and take a turn at the shack cornering Freyer lane. She didn't mind the rain as nearly as much. She calmly trailed behind her friend. She let the rain soak her head to toe, the water streaming down her face. She stuck her tongue out.

* * *

><p>The iron taste of it on her lips made her spit. Shepard brought one of her arms from where they were outstretched and wiped away the blood covering her face. The shimmering aura of violet enveloping her began to dissipate. Not two seconds after she had killed the Batarian calling itself Charn, the rest of her squad had followed her lead. She hadn't needed to lift a finger. A minute later and the four Batarians laid dead before her.<p>

The remains of Charn however were much messier than the other three. Instead of getting a quick shot to the head, the Batarian that had tried to negotiate them met a more fitting end. His body laid roughly in two halves, a red pool of blood congregating between them, its hue of it much darker than a Humans'. Although the coloring might have been due to the dark lighting of the room.

HRK.

The noise sounded like it had come from Shield. So she promptly ignored it. She instead focused on Charn's remains as something among them was catching her eye. Her curiosity eventually getting the better of her, she bent over to pick it off its belt. After wiping the object against one of her grenade packs and getting rid of the blood, she examined it again.

_A key card. _

There was still one facility left on the asteroid they hadn't checked yet, according to the map taken from the transmitter tower. It would most likely be where the remaining engineers and four-eyed freaks were. The key card was most likely how the Batarians had access to every structure on the asteroid, and now, it would do the same for them. Clipping the card to her waist, she scanned the room one more time.

"Seems like that was it. Wrex, I want you to take point. Check of any more of these bastards are in the room. The rest of you, check your guns and displays. We'll move after Wrex gives us the go ahead. We still have one more building full of Batarians to deal with."

"What the FUCK was that?"

She stopped what she was doing and slowly turned around to face him. "Excuse me?"

"Shepard! You just fucking ripped that guy in half! Wha-What the fuck?!"

"What's your problem? Its dead."

"You don't see a problem with how you dead it? Or you know, the fact that he just wanted to talk?!"

She let out a fake chuckle. "Just wanted to talk?"

"Yeah! He was facing us unarmed Shepard! He didn't shoot us on sight! He obviously just wanted to talk! There was no need to do...that!" he responded pointing at the Batarian behind her.

"No need?" Shepard's face grew dark. "NO NEED?! The BATARIANS ARE IN THE PROCESS OF KILLING MILLIONS! They don't get to beg for mercy now that someone's here who can actually fight back!"

Vakarian shifted uncomfortably behind the agent.

"How can you not be disgusted in the least?" His visor was too dark to see his features through but she assumed he was horrified, obviously ignorant of what real combat was like.

"Commander...that...it was a little excessive."

She whipped her head right to Kaidan who was standing beside him.

_Excessive? How could he say that!? They're committing global genocide born of bigotry! They-_

"What are you talking about Kaidan? Shepard's right. They're trying to destroy an entire planet! Four-eyes here got what he deserved. And I say the rest of them deserve the same. I'm actually looking forward to the next ones we meet," Ashley said hefting up her rifle.

"I did admire your style Commander. It was almost Krogan of you," Wrex shouted from around the corner, already on the other side of the room's barricade.

Shepard ignored them and turned her attention back to Shield. He stood there returning her stare.

"We still have one more compound left to clear. I don't care what you think. You're going to do what I say, whether you like or not. I tell you to jump, you ask 'how high.' If you question my command anytime during our mission again, I'll have you thrown out the airlock." He didn't reply. "UNDERSTOOD?"

Several moments went by before he slowly nodded in the affirmative.

"All Clear Shepard."

He quickly trudged past her as soon as he heard Wrex's voice, walking around the mess they had made. Shepard turned her attention to the rest of the squad. Tali and Garrus stood silently behind the two marines. "You heard him. Move out."

* * *

><p><strong>2170 CE<strong>

She tried to fall back asleep. But the sheets were just so uncomfortable. She tossed and turned and tossed and turned before eventually just surrendering any thought of falling back asleep. She decided to settle down and lay there in the dark. After a few minutes of calmly laying on her bed, she finally began to notice how wet her sheets were. She grimaced.

_Ew. Why are they so sweaty!?_

Too tired to actually get up and change them though, she resigned herself to her fate. She picked her ear as a faint ringing noise began inside it. As an afterthought, she slowly looked over to the alarm clock on her nightstand.

04:21:56.

She groaned.

_Ugh. Tonight's going to be one of those nights. _

She turned her head back to the ceiling above her. She continued to put her finger in her ear as the ringing continued.

_Ugh, this is so annoying. Stop ringing ear. Why are you ringing?!_

Then she sat herself up.

_Wait. Is that coming from...over there?_

The girl eventually found the strength to throw herself out of the bed to investigate. She blindly stumbled around the room, attempting to locate the source. Her investigation eventually led her over to her bedroom's window. Flipping off its shutters, she looked out. The ringing was definitely louder now. The first thing that her eyes caught sight of were the stars in the night sky. They were as beautiful as always. She would never admit it, but she could stare at them for hours. Climbing the hilltop in their backyard with her dad and lying on her back at the top was something they did every Saturday night. Lying with her head among grass, the dew wetting her back, it was one of the few moments in the week she ever got time alone with him. By just her tenth birthday, she could confidently name every constellation in the night sky.

The ringing grew louder.

She shook her head and resumed focus back on her current task. Moving her gaze down from the night sky, she found that the first floors of Mister Denghao and the Cooperson's had their lights on. Mister Denghao was past seventy, he rarely stayed up past 19:00:00. And the Cooperson's had two children, neither past nine. None of their neighbors ever stayed up this late. Something flashed far off in the distance, far, far past their houses. The ringing was getting louder.

A sudden bright flash of light blinded her. She cried out in surprise, finding herself taking several steps back from the window covering her eyes. After blinking profusely, she hurriedly looked back out the window to see what had caused it. She couldn't tell where it was coming from, but a radiant ray of orange now cast itself across the houses and dirt road below. It illuminated everything outside her window, and she could now see people running through what had initially been inky darkness.

_Why the heck are they doing? Why does Mister Collins have his suitcase at f-_

The glass of the window shattered across her face, the sonic boom that followed it knocked her several feet away from the window. She found herself screaming as she hit the floor.

"JANE!"

Her mother burst into her room fully dressed. She scooped Jane up into her arms. The young girl realized they were both in tears.

"Mom! My-my-my win-"

"Oh god! I'm so glad you're alright!" Her mother hugged her for several more seconds before letting her feet touch the ground. "Jane! You need to gather your things! We have to leave!"

"What?" she sniffled, trying to calm down. Her mother's hysterics weren't helping. "Why?"

"We don't have time honey! Your father's already getting the VT1 ready. Hurry and pack a change of clothes! I still need to get me and daddy's things. Be downstairs in less than a minute!" Her mother flit out of her bedroom.

"MOM?"

No answer.

Jane wheeled around her room in a panic.

_What the hell's happening!_

She sprinted over to her closet first and rummaged around for what seemed like an eternity before eventually finding her travel bag. Grabbing it, she rushed back across the room to her clothes drawer and started yanking out shirts, socks, pants, bras, whatever ended up in her hand. As she cleared the first drawer, she heard a scream from downstairs.

BLAM-BLAM.

She froze. Gun shots reverberated throughout the house. They had come from downstairs.

COME ON!

She snapped herself out of her stupor and snapped the bag shut. Jane hurriedly did one more comb over of her room.

_Do I-_

BANG. BANG.

More gun shots rang through the bedroom. She cried out in shock and froze where she was. It slowly registered that they had come from outside this time. Without the tinted window, the bright orange lights now danced inside her room, casting sinister shadows to snake across it. The ringing was louder than ever now. Despite its volume, she could still hear people shouting wildly outside.

"MOM?! I'M DONE!"

No answer.

Panicked, she slung the bag over her shoulder and ran out of her room. She looked into the open doorway across from her. Her parent's room.

Empty.

She began to sprint down the hallway. She heard yelling coming from downstairs. Her father. He was yelling something.

Her bare feet pounded against the carpeted floor as she rocketed down the corridor.

She was only several feet from the stair case now.

"JANE! RUN! JAN-"

BANG.

She heard gun shots. She ran even harder.

The floor became like quick sand under her, slowing her movement. Her progress forward stopped. The floor slowly began to swallow her. Her feet were the first to disappear. She felt weightless as she fell into the gaping maw. She lost her sight as it consumed her vision. Everything had become pitch black again. She stretched out her arms, trying to grab on to something that could stop it from taking her. It continued to envelop her regardless. She lost her sense of hearing last before she really fell.

And fell.

And fell.

And fell.

* * *

><p>The second explosion caused her to roll out from underneath the balcony. Shepard looked straight up to find a rocket drone hovering above her.<p>

"SCATTER!"

She fired her pistol at it straight from below, the drone to glimmering bright blue as her bullets flung off its kinetic barriers. Someone's overload immediately followed her gunshots, short circuiting the robot's shields. A carnage shot from the level below was the last to hit the drone, causing it to enter its death throes, igniting it in a bright plume of orange.

"HAAAA-"

She jerked around to face the Batarian yelling at her. His right arm was cocked back. Half of it was encased in a shimmering orange gauntlet that had spikes protruding from its knuckles. Likely fabricated by its omni-tool she guessed. Shepard then realized the alien was aiming to hit her with it. She ducked down and rolled backwards, causing the Batarian to swing and miss, his fist curving through the air until meeting a wall with a solid CRACK.

Popping back up from her roll with shotgun now in hand, the vanguard let the Batarian have one, two, three quick successive rounds of shredded metal. Its shields, armor, and flesh were torn apart by each shot, in that order.

Alarm beeped in her earpiece. The gun was overheated. She sheathed it on her back and whipped the pistol off her thigh. She scanned the area around her.

Nothing.

Her HUD's short range radar indicated the same. Shepard took another moment to take stock of the subterranean dome's layout. She was back at the facility's entrance, standing at the top of a short flight of stairs, her team nowhere in sight. Following her command, they had all split up. Cautiously, she took several steps out into the open and strained her eyes to locate them.

They were scattered all around the enormous underground chamber. She could hear Wrex bellowing from the pit located below the main floor, and gun shots were ringing from the opposite side of the room. The only squad mates she could visibly see were Kaidan and Ashley who were dug in on the right half of the gigantic lobby, pinned down by several more Batarians firing at them.

Every fusion torch on the asteroid had been shut down, foiling the terrorist's plot to drop it on the unsuspecting colony of Terra Nova. At this point, Shepard would normally just have Joker bomb the facility from orbit, killing most of the Batarians in a fiery inferno and burying alive those who didn't.

But they had hostages. The girl that had first contacted them and whatever faculty that still remained alive. The Batarians had sent them a recording of their voices not minutes after shutting down the last torch. So they actually had to siege the structure instead, destroying its defenses one by one before being able to marching in.

She aimed down her pistol sight and fired several warning shots at the nearest Batarian attacking Kaidan and Ashley's position. It turned away from them, looking for who had just shot at it. Facing her direction was just what she wanted however, and she flung a warp at it. The commander's biotics instantly tore apart its shield and bits of exposed skin, most of which was on its face. She then let loose a real volley this time, hitting most of the Batarian's eyes dead center. She moved on Kaidan and Ashley's location immediately after, slaughtering any more of the aliens that got in her way. After killing two four-eyed freaks trying to flank them, she saddled up beside them.

"Commander!"

"Kaidan! Give me a sitrep."

"They're two Batarians hiding behind those crates straight ahead. We'd be able to handle them except their's a third perched on that balcony up top."

He pointed it out.

"Commander, do you have any grenades on you? That would clear them out easily," Ashley jumped in.

"Don't need them. Kaidan, you remember you you were taught not to mix your biotics with others?"

"Yeah?" he said quizzically.

"I want you to send a lift field at those Batarians."

"They're behind cover. It wouldn't be able to reach them."

"Not at them, send it in between the two crates they're hiding behind."

"What would that-"

"Just do it!"

He shut up and obliged, popping out of cover long enough to manipulate a mass effect field where she had indicated. As he ducked back to cover, Shepard got out, and let a warp loose at where he had just created the biotic field. As soon as the two mass effect fields interacted with each other, a explosion erupted forth. The two Batarians didn't stand a chance. Without its friendly fire, they were able to pick off the exposed sniper easily.

"Damn Commander!" Ashley shouted as they emerged from cover.

She rallied them now that they were no longer stuck, and made an executive decision to charge to the other side of the room, where she spotted Vakarian. His blue visor was unmistakable. As Shepard, Kaidan, and Ashley made their way over to his position, the bodies began to pile up. The Batarians went down quicker than they did on Elysium. And as far as she could tell, her squad wasn't getting anything worse than a few grazed extremities, something easily fixed with a dab of gel. It was clear that the Batarians on the asteroid were simple terrorists, slavers most likely. Not the professional military of the Hegemony as she had first suspected.

_Although not really like there's a difference. You'd think having two more eyes would at least help your aim. _

She lifted the Batarian on a balcony above Garrus while Ashley littered it with bullets.

They reached the Turian's fox hole in less than five minutes. He was taking cover behind a circle of crates at the base of a staircase. How he had gotten all the way to the opposite side of the room safely, Shepard hadn't a clue. As lucky as he might have been, she had to give him credit. Making it this far over alone was no small feat.

Their band of four became five not a minute later as the Krogan Wrex emerged from the chamber's pit, coated in Batarian blood. She smiled at the sight of him, glad she had taken him along. Nodding to the Krogan, Shepard did one last sweep over the room. The chamber had grown quiet. And she didn't see any other enemies. She turned around to Kaidan who was looking up the staircase.

"Kaidan, can you do a manual scan of the room for hard suits?"

"On it Commander. But I think th-"

"DIE SHEPARD-"

BANG. BLAM. BANG. BAM. CRACK. BLAM. BANG.

The Batarian slumped back dead inside the small module it had leaped from. The door it had opened for a split second closed again.

"...I think we're clear Commander."

"Looks that way. Did any of you see the hostages?"

"That's a negative Commander."

"Same here."

"Didn't see anything Shepard."

"Nothing down there." The Krogan made a gesture back to the pit.

"Well then split up. I want-"

"You know what I want Shepard?"

They all looked toward the source of the voice. At the top of the staircase they were standing below were five Batarians. The lime-green one at the fore she recognized as Balak. One of the Alliance's most wanted, and who was also the one that had just spoken to them.

"-I want you Humans to suffer."

"Trust me. We were suffering as soon as we saw your face," she spat back.

"Ah. Yes. Make your jokes. I'm about to make one out of the Alliance's most famed attack dog."

Shepard pointed her pistol at him with her left hand, while conjuring a sphere of dark energy in the other. Out of her peripherals, she observed her squad making similar moves. The only thing that prevented her from cutting into the Batarian was a small clicking sound coming from its left hand. Balak was holding a small device in it. Flicking its cap on and off. The Batarian's jowls curved upwards.

"I hope I have your attention now."

_A detonator._

"You filthy-"

"Shepard! Watch what you say next. Or you might find the Humans you came to save in pieces. If you actually care about your people, you'll do what I say."

"And why do you think I would do that?" she yelled at him, eyes wide with fury.

"Because this is a detonator Shepard! You look at me the wrong way and everyone here dies."

"Why are you doing this!?" Kaidan shouted from behind her.

"To deliver justice for our people. To punish you Humans for every crime you've done to our people!" He started pacing back and forth at the top of the stairs. "But luckily for you, your comeuppance will have to wait another day. I'm leaving this asteroid. If you try to stop me, your little helper and the rest of the Humans will die."

"You don't get to leave Balak. Not after what you've done," Shepard growled in a low tone.

"What I'VE done?!" Balak shouted enraged. "This is nothing that compares to what's been done to the Batarians! We've been forced into exile, forced to strive on what we can scrounge up! It's been like that for decades-"

Shepard forced a laugh. The Batarian couldn't tell and didn't care whether it was sincere or not.

"YOU DARE?!"

"Please! Go on! I'd love to hear more about the suffering of your people."

"YOU-"

"YOU'RE NOT THE INNOCENT PARTY HERE! YOU brought all of that upon yourself! YOU exiled yourselves because you were spoiled children who didn't get their way. YOU are forced to live in your own squalor because you're weak! You had centuries more than us to establish your own space, gather your own resource-"

"YOU invaded our space! Took OUR resources! When we approached the Council for aid they brushed us off! We were left to defend ourselves. But the Humans were stronger than us. We knew that. The Council knew that. But it didn't matter. YOU and _YOUR_ kind are the only reason we're in this position!"

Shepard tilted her head to the right and pointed a finger accusingly at him.

"YOU are insane. The Batarians are in this position because you have no friends on the Council, no allies on the Presidium, and no connections on the entire damn Citadel. And you want to know why? Because you're people are disgusting two-bit slavers that prey on the weak and take advantage of those who can't fight back!"

"LIES-"

"The bombing of Mannovai! Annexing the Asari colony of Esan! Fighting with C-Sec forces when you Batarians tried to enslave Enael. This all happened before Humanity even came on the Galactic stage. So you're right. Humans are stronger than you. In fact, we're simply just better than you. We don't kill millions on a whim. We're not monsters like you-"

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH SHEPARD! You can't understand...in fact, no, you don't want to understand. We're destroying this colony because we have no other CHOICE! ...Sometimes, you have to get someone's attention before they'll listen."

Shepard's eyes flitted to the ground for a moment, her voice quieting to a whisper. "...What was Elysium then?...Mindoir? Just a way to get our attention?" She looked back up to the sickly green Batarian and stared at him with such hatred he reflexively took a step back. "Well now you have it."

She exended her right arm and released a mass effect field in his direction. A trail of indigo emanated from the biotic sphere as it flew up the staircase toward the Batarian. It hit Balak just a split second after she had loosed it, encasing his entire body in a shimmering blue stasis field.

She quickly drew her eyes to his left hand.

Her heart sank as she saw his finger pressing the button down.

The stair well became a shooting galley as both sides began to exchange fire. She shut her eyes, letting bullets whiz toward her face and bounce off her kinetic barriers. She made no effort to get behind cover. She braced for what she had just done.

* * *

><p><strong>2170 CE<strong>

Jane's eyes slowly opened.

Something faint in the distance shimmered.

Her eyes strained, squinting.

A small circle of light was shining off in the distance.

It seemed miles away.

She could see nothing else. A darkness surrounded her, surrounded everything around her. It was thick, like syrup, impenetrable by her eyes. She would never even know her eyes were open...save for that single source of light her eyes were affixed to in the distance. She could see nothing except the light.

She laid there on her stomach, in what she believed to be mud, for what seemed like an eternity. Dazed and confused. Cold and alone.

She had just been in bed, then the next second, everything had become a nightmare. A nightmare still ongoing.

_...Am I dead? _

The thought repeated over and over in her head. The light yards away flickered.

_Is...that...the light at the end...the one dad always used to-_

Jane cried out in pain when she tried to move. Her entire body seemed to scream in agony. She lay there in the mud, writhing. Everything burned. The shell shock had worn off, and every bruise, laceration, and injury now registered in her mind. Shrapnel under her skin. Metal crushing her body. Blood coagulating on her ripped pajamas.

Everything around her was black like ink. Everything save the light several feet away from her. She grimaced and reached toward it. Her body screamed for her to stop.

She grabbed a handful of mud and dragged herself forward.

All she needed to do was reach the light. Everything would be alright if she just reached the light. That's what her mind told her.

She extended her other arm and this time grabbed a handful of fabric. The texture was familiar. Her bedroom rug.

She blinked the drop of blood out of her eye.

_Look at the light._

She laid there prone in the dark, trying to register what she had gripped in her fingers.

_Reach for the light._

She winced as another wave of pain flooded her brain. She reached her arm out again and heaved herself forward another few inches.

_Reach the light._

The pain was excruciating. She faded in and out of consciousness several times. But every time she opened her eyes, she just saw that one thing.

_The light._

She continued to drag herself over the mud. Over the pieces of carpeted floor. Over sheared parts of metal. Past searing iron rebar. Every time she dragged her body forward, it screamed out in pain. But she kept lugging it forward. Kept moving toward the light.

It was getting closer.

She grimaced as she continued to haul herself toward it. The light was blinding now, the darkness unable to swallow it now that she was at the source.

_Almost...there-_

She extended her arm one last time through the portal of light. And she pulled herself through.

She was completely blinded.

She shut her eyes in response to the amount of stimuli that they now received. She lay there blinking rapidly, trying to adjust to her new environ.

Everything around her slowly came into focus. The first thing Jane recognized was the hill before her. The hill behind her house.

It was painted a bright orange, colored by the raging fires she could hear crackling above her.

She forced her arms to heave the rest of her body through the hole. She gave one final tug out from under the rubble. Jane slowly pushed herself off the ground, although being nearly blinded again by the searing pain she felt doing so. Once standing weakly on her feet, the girl looked back to where she had just crawled out from.

Her home. What she saw caused tears to stream down her face. It was ruined. The home she had grown up in. Gone.

Smoke plumed from the wreckage. Bent, broken, twisted bits of metal stood where the walls of the first floor once did. The rest of the abode was unrecognizable, having caved into the pile of rubble before her. The dark night sky she had looked upon earlier was now blood orange, an effect of the flames consuming the other colonial houses around her. She fell to her knees, sobbing uncontrollably. She didn't know what happened. She didn't know what she did. What she could have done to deserve this.

She began to act like an animal, moving around on all fours, looking around wildly, attempting to find anyone around that could help. Anyone that could-

She made eye-contact with something.

It stood on two legs. It stood up straight. It stood upon the wreckage of her home.

At first she thought it was her father. It was tall. But something on its face caused her to get back on her feet and take a step back. Pain shot through her like a lightning bolt, but all she was aware of was the terror that gripped her. The terror of what she saw. The fire reflecting off the being's eyes. All four of them.

"Hey! What do we have here! You're a tough one!" It shouted over the roaring inferno, starting to swagger over to her. How nonchalant it was with the horrors around it terrified her even further. It toted a large gun in its hands. It had a large metal barb sticking out of its nozzle.

She took several more steps back. Her knees almost buckled out from under her.

"And a child too?! Oh, isn't this just my lucky day! Parahn certainly likes 'em young!"

She turned and ran as fast as she could up the hill. Her body screamed for her to stop, the pain echoing through her arms, legs, chest, and head almost unbearable. But her mind told her to keep moving. To keep running as fast as she could. Jane's feet pounded up the grassy knoll. She barely registered the monster's remarks as she cleared the hillside.

"Haha! This just keeps getting better and better! I love a good hunt!"

She reached the top of the hill and immediately made for the forest. She once thought it a place of refuge for her. A place where she could always go to for solitude and be safe. As Jane ran toward it now, the forest seemed malevolent. The large swath of tall, deciduous trees cast long dark shadows across the field she was running through, sharply contrasting with the flames at her back.

She didn't give a thought to the colony behind her. To look back and see what it looked like, whether she could see anyone still alive. She just kept running.

Branch after branch whipped across her face, leaving numerous cuts across it. They stung.

But they were nothing compared to the pain she already endured. She sprinted as fast as she could through the brush, batting her way through the undergrowth. The area around her was almost pitch black again, far enough from the colony that the light of its fires no longer reached her. Only the stars in the night sky illuminated the path before her.

THUNK.

She let out a scream as a harpoon lodged itself in the trunk of a tree inches away. She ran harder.

She was becoming dizzy, pain shooting up her spine, legs aching, lungs screaming to stop. She had run far enough. She couldn't run anymore.

But it was right behind her. She couldn't stop. She-

It her face like a freight truck.

Her head jerked back and hit the ground hard. She lay dazed on her back, struggling to stay conscious.

"That wasn't as fun as I thought it would be," the grotesque alien said now standing above her.

She attempted to turn and crawl away but he quickly pinned her to the ground, straddling her. She struggled to get him off, but his knees kept her arms stuck to the ground. He smiled cruelly on top of her.

"Trust me. I like this as much as you do. You Humans are so disgusting." He spat to the side. "I mean look at all that fur. Absolutely sickening." Then with the free hand not holding her right shoulder down, it started rummaging through the small pouches on its belt.

"Don't worry, this won't last long."

She screamed and struggled, tears streaming down her face as she fought against her attacker futilely. He snickered as he continued to rummage through his belt for what he was looking for. She eventually stopped fighting and became quiet.

She realized she still needed a dress for Formal.

_I never picked out that dress with Karen._

She turned her head to the left. The growth of the forest floor brushed her cheeks.

_Eluam...was this...I still...a dress..._

"Given up already? I thought you might have some more fight left in you...dammit. Where'd I put that damn thing?!"

She resigned herself to her fate. Her house was destroyed. Everyone in the colony was most likely dead. Her parents-

Her eyes suddenly focused upon something resting on the forest floor.

The alien's boot. It was hanging from the leg resting on her left arm.

It had a knife sheathed in it.

She discretely moved her arm. His leg was placed on her bicep, not the joint. She could still bend it. She slowly slid her hand along the floor, through the grass, toward the knife. She was so close.

But it wasn't enough. It was still out of reach. Just an inch out of her reach. An inch. If she could just reach it. If she could just-

"AH! There it-ARGGH"

The four-eyed alien screamed in pain as she sunk the knife into the back of his leg. She ripped it out and still glowing blue, pushed him off with all her strength. The alien hit a tree and rolled to the ground.

"AGH! YOU BITCH!"

He attempted to push himself back off the ground but she flung herself at him, landing on top of him.

This time...she was the one on top.

Jane stared into his dark beady eyes. They had no color. No pupil. No iris. She found them devoid of anything that could even remotely be called Human.

She drove the knife into the upper left one first. The alien screamed in agony again but that didn't stop her. She drove the knife into his face again and again, continuing long after the alien had stopped making noise. It's face bore little resemblance to what it had just been after she was finished. She thrust the knife inside one more time before leaving the blade embedded in it.

She put her back against a tree and slid to the ground. She was devoid of any feeling. Even pain. Whereas before it had snaked through every inch of mind and in every thought she had, she barely even registered it now.

She was tired.

She was empty.

She didn't give a second thought to the branches snapping behind her or when voices began to speak.

"I could have sworn I heard something-"

"Quiet."

She let the first two pass without making a word. She didn't have the energy to.

The third one was the first to notice the corpse, and subsequently, her. He jumped when he noticed her outline.

"HANDS UP!" he shouted swinging his rifle at her.

The rest of them wheeled to face her too, alarmed by his outburst.

"I said Quiet lieutenant!"

The one who had spoken stared at her through their helmet. It was too dark to see through the person's visor. Jane didn't know whether they were Humans or aliens. Jane didn't know and Jane didn't care. Jane didn't care that she fluttered in and out of consciousness. Jane didn't care as her upper torso toppled to the ground. Jane didn't care as she passed out in their arms.

* * *

><p>An exorbitant amount of time had passed. But no explosion. Shepard opened her eyes.<p>

The Batarians flanking Balak had died quickly, without even putting up a fight. She heard her shield go down, but not a single bullet had grazed her. The terrorists weren't nearly skilled enough to do them any harm. The only dangerous four-eye here was Balak. And Balak remained where it stood, still frozen in her stasis field.

_That's not how they work. My biotics couldn't have stopped the signal-_

"Commander?"

Shepard didn't need to give him a response.

With a flick of her wrist, she released the Batarian from stasis. He was quick. His bullets immediately started bouncing off her barrier. She was quicker.

It all happened over a span of a second.

She dropped her pistol. The pump of her shotgun swung into the empty hand not a moment sooner. Her barrier dropped. The violet aura evaporated around her. Balak smiled. She pulled the shot gun's trigger. A spread of serrated metal escaped from the gun's muzzle up the stairs. The metal shredded Balak's shields apart. Its impact threw him off-balance. He staggered back violently.

Then the following volley from her team came. Sniper fire, shotgun groupings, and assault rifle ammo tore apart the tech armor below his kinetic barriers. A large amount of the metal ripped through the Batarian itself. She quickly held up a fist to halt their fire.

They all looked on as the Batarian groaned on the ground, a river of blood streaming from his bullet wounds down the staircase. He was still alive.

_Good._

She bent over to pick her pistol off the ground and then began to walk up the staircase towards him.

Balak attempted to reach for his gun but was too weak to even lift his arm off the ground. She kicked it away once she was at the top of the staircase.

"Argh." Balak's head swung back and forth across the floor. It coughed up blood. "...you Huma-"

BLAM.

BLAM. BLAM. BLAM.

She stood there frozen for a moment before remembering where she was and holstering the smoking gun in her hand.

_One for every eye. Try to reach your damn paradise now._

She bent down over his face. But she stopped herself. She realized her crew was still present at the bottom of the stairs. Then their conversation just moments before buzzed through her head.

_The whole thing had been a feint. A hoax. A bluff. A bluff he had almost escaped with. If I let him go and the hostages had never been in any real danger in the first place-__But if Balak's detonator was an empty bluff...then why did Balak still press it? If there were no bombs, why did Balak still press it as if it would do something?_

She stood up and turned her attention towards the bottom of the stairs. Kaidan, Ashley, Wrex, and Garrus all stared back at her, waiting for an order.

"Balak's done. Now we-"

She realized they were missing someone.

_Where the hell is Tali?_

Then she did a double take.

"Where the hell is Shield?"

* * *

><p><strong>2170 CE<strong>

"Hey kid. I know he stopped by here earlier. Did Ernesto tell you where the hell he was going before he left?"

She lay there on the cot silent.

"I know he was here. Did he-"

"Leave her alone Mort. I saw Lieutenant Zabaleta the second block down from here. I don't know what he's doing but I'm sure you can still catch him there if you hurry."

"...thanks."

As Mort left her tent, the other that had spoken to him entered. This was the third time he had visited her, or the third time she had actually seen him visit. He was tall enough that he had to crouch to enter the small makeshift tent. He was probably a couple inches past six feet. His skin was a caramel color, and his eyes were a dark brown. So was the hair on his head. What little he had.

The man had the look of someone older than their actual age. The first time she had seen him, she thought his face was harsh, one of a strict man incapable of empathy. And at first, she didn't want to speak to him either. But as soon as they locked eyes, she was surprised to find that his were soft and gentle, surprised to find his face conveying genuine concern for her instead of the feigned sympathy of the others.

The first night he had apparently checked on her regularly, or so the soldier that called himself Ernie had said. She had apparently slept through the next day too when the soldiers left the cover of the forest and took back the colony. The first time she awoke, he had told her that the aliens had already left, and the marines were now cleaning up what they had left behind. The unimaginable horrors the aliens had left behind. They moved her to their main base of operations now located in the colony's capital. Three days had passed since she had been found, and they were still finding body after body under the debris and destruction left by the slavers. She had left her tent only once after she awoke, and the very first thing she had seen was hundreds of the dead in body bags.

She had never left her tent since. This man continued to check on her though unlike the others. He wasn't even a medic like the man named Stims, who checked on her periodically by obligation. And he didn't want to talk about what had happened like the other man Mort. She couldn't even if she wanted.

The dark-skinned man simply showed kindness just for the sake of being kind. Every time he entered her tent, he brought snacks asides from her water and food, things to make sure she was comfortable, came in to give her company.

"How are you doing?" he asked her, sitting himself down on the dirt floor.

She didn't reply.

"Oh, wait a second." He swung the bag on his back in front of him and started digging through it. "Here. Drink this." He handed her a box of juice. "One of the biotics was willing to part with it...the Evac ships should be here soon alright?. Just hold on until then. You're going to be okay."

She took the juice and stared at it in her hands. He smiled wistfully at her. Then he looked back out the tent flaps.

"I've heard Mort hasn't gotten much from you."

She continued to silently stare at the juice pack.

"Where you lived in the colony, your age...your name. Nothing." He sighed. "...Do you have any relatives you think we could contact?"

She shook her head slowly.

"Are you sure? ...Alright. When our shuttles do arrive, you'll be taken onto one of the cruisers orbiting the planet and checked into its med bay. There they'll examine you again and treat you for everything Stim couldn't. After that...I'm not quite sure. If you don't have any other family to care for you...I think you'll most likely be brought to the Alliance Academy for Juveniles. If you are, you'll like it. It's a good program. You'll receive housing, food, a support group-"

He stopped talking as she continued to stare at the juice. He placed his hand on her shoulder causing her to look up.

"Whatever happens...I want you to know you can always contact if you ever need anything alright? If you ever run into trouble, if you ever need help...if you ever need someone to talk to." His face grew serious. "Do you remember my name?"

She locked eyes with him. She spoke for the first time since she had woken.

"David..."

"Lieutenant David Edward Anderson. I want you to remember it."

"...ok."

"May I know yours?"

"...Jane."

"Jane? That's a good name."

"Jane Shepard."

His eyes grew wide. "You're Shepard's kid?"

* * *

><p>Codex Entry:<p>

**Edward M. Shepard**

File: Service Number 1312-AD-1014 (Inactive)

Edward M. Shepard was born in the year 2114 CE in the city of Earth's _United North American States_, Vancouver. Enlisted in the Military of the United North American States 2132 CE. Chosen for transfer to Systems Alliance upon founding in 2134 CE (Rank translated to Corporal).

Assigned to the 1st Expeditionary Division 2134 CE. Participated in high-risk missions to colonize space beyond Sol Relay [see pre-contact logs]. Served with distinction on Shanxi 2157 CE (Highlight: Evicted Turian forces with N7 taskforce Cobra from City of Qian. Led successful assault on Turian staging point Aephus. Commandeered Turian aircraft and boarded PFS Daetus. Commandeering PFS Daetus, fired several volleys upon the Turian 57th Flotilla before setting ship on collision course, destroying the PFS Koranus. Received Distinguished Service Medal. Received Medal of Honor. Received Medal of Valor. Received Star of Terra.). Assigned rank General 2157 CE. Resigned 2158 CE.

**Why did you send me this file again Gellix? I thought you were tasked with the other one.**

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**This took ten times longer to write than I thought it would. Lame. But on the other hand...One hundred thousand words baby. Twenty chapters. 5,000 words per chapter. I even have to scroll down to post new chapters now! Yeaaaah. Aside from 10k of that mostly being AN and 'Codex' entries...****I still say the story has 100 thousand words. Bite me. Hopefully I'll make better progress next week though! Could you imagine? Two chapters a week? Hngh. Until then!**

**Oh and-**

**Wolf: **Her reaction would've been juicy to see fo sho. Am I saving it for later? Is it something we'll just never know? Maybe. And Shield would probably let it get to his head if you told him that. Dude has a big enough ego as it is. Appreciate your input as always man!

**TMNT: **Really. Shield finds them uncomfortable but the amount of times he's already been concussed, you think he wouldn't leave the Normandy without it. As for credits, that problem might be solved sooNOT. The only credits he'll come across are the ones left in unopened crates. He's just a poor boy that needs no sympathy. Credits are easy come, easy go.

**Casper: **Yes.

**Lieutenant: **At first I would've said naw, this story isn't dark at all. But then ^. So...the mood does vary wildly from chapter to chapter. But as the story goes on, I hope a common theme throughout all of them becomes apparent. What that theme is, I have no idea. But I'm sure its a good one. And I have to say, your conjecture is pretty on point. One of those theories is pretty, kinda, spot on almost. Shield's origins certainly won't stay a mystery forever. Until that shroud's lifted though, I hope the secret tantalizes your every waking moment. Oh and as for the Quarian opera...that was actually an in-game thing. I don't quite know where Bioware was going with that. Were they hinting that the Geth were observing the Quarians? That they still watched old vids of their creators in curiosity? That the Geth were hiding their transmissions in Quarian cultural vids? Who knows. I don't. Just included it for consistency I suppose. Always have fun with our back and forth bro!

**Hiccup:** But...what is love?

**GuardianoftheGalaxy'sGhettoBox: **It really means a lot to hear that man. I'm glad you enjoy it! That's one reason why I'm glad I found this site and started this thang. If I just wrote it up in word and left it in the folder, I may have never gotten past Eden Prime. Knowing people actually expect something to come out has been a great motivator. And if it's one thing I hate the most, it's not finishing something. I'll be damned if I don't finish the story by this summer. Although I'll still be writing until 2016 if necessary!...I hope not though.

**In the Next Chapter: She's a maniac, maaaaniac at yo' doorrrr. And she's glancing like she's never glanced befoooore-Oh. Shepard.**

**Tune in next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made!**


End file.
